Patent Publication Number: US-2010129782-A1

Title: Electronic book with enhanced features

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates generally to electronic books. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     Electronic books have been provided in which a person can read electronic book files stored on a storage medium in a compact, hand-held housing. Text is presented on a display of the housing, and more than a single electronic book can be stored on the storage medium. In this way, a person can in effect transport a large number of books for reading at the person&#39;s leisure in a single lightweight electronic book form factor. As recognized herein, such electronic books can be made even more convenient and user-friendly. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     An electronic book includes a housing and first and second electronic touch screen displays supported on the housing. A digital processor in the housing controls presentation on the displays. A tangible computer-reader storage medium is accessible to the processor, with electronic book files being stored on the medium for presentation of text represented by the files in a portrait mode on the display. The processor receives a display mode change signal and in response automatically changes presentation of text on at least one display from portrait mode to landscape mode. 
     In some embodiments, in response to the display mode change signal the processor presents an image of a keyboard in landscape on the first display and an image of text in landscape on the second display. The display mode change signal can be generated by a person touching a key on the housing. Alternatively or in addition an accelerometer can be provided in the housing to provide an input signal to the processor. The display mode change signal can be generated by the signal exceeding a threshold. 
     In some implementations the processor presents a user interface on the display allowing a user to select a language. A keyboard associated with the language selected by the user is automatically presented upon receipt of a display mode change signal. In example embodiments the housing is foldable to mimic opening and closing a paper book. 
     In some example embodiments a position signal receiver is supported by the housing and communicates with the processor. In other embodiments a solar charger receptacle is on the housing and is connectable to a solar charger to charge a battery in the housing. 
     In another aspect, an electronic book includes a housing, at least a first electronic touch screen display supported on the housing, and a digital processor in the housing controlling presentation on the display. A tangible computer-reader storage medium is accessible to the processor. Electronic book files are stored on the medium for presentation of text represented by the files on the display. The processor presents a user interface on the display allowing a user to select a language, with a keyboard associated with the language selected by the user being automatically presented on the display upon receipt of a display mode change signal. 
     In another aspect, a method includes providing an electronic book with opposed first and second displays facing each other on a foldable housing, and presenting book text on each page in portrait layout. Upon receipt of a mode change signal, the method presents on the first display an image of a keyboard or text in landscape layout and presents on the second display text in landscape layout. 
     The details of the present invention, both as to its structure and operation, can best be understood in reference to the accompanying drawings, in which like reference numerals refer to like parts, and in which: 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view of an example electronic book in the closed configuration; 
         FIG. 2  is a perspective view showing the electronic book of  FIG. 1  in the open configuration; 
         FIG. 3  is a block diagram of an example book; 
         FIGS. 4-6  are schematic diagrams illustrating changing between landscape and portrait modes; 
         FIG. 7  is a flow chart showing some of the logic outlined in  FIGS. 4-6 ; and 
         FIG. 8  is a flow chart of the keyboard language logic. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     Referring initially to  FIGS. 1 and 2 , an example electronic book  10  is shown that can have, in one embodiment, a foldable configuration to mimic opening and closing a paper book. Specifically, the electronic book  10  may have a rigid lightweight plastic “cover” member  12  joined to a rigid lightweight plastic “back” member  14  along a hinge  16  for movement between an open configuration ( FIG. 2 ), wherein an electronic display  18  of the “cover” member  12  is exposed for viewing, and a closed configuration ( FIG. 1 ), wherein the display  18  is not exposed because it lies flush against the inside surface of the “back” member  14 . If desired, an input device  20  such as another touch screen display may be provided on, e.g., the “back” member  14 . 
       FIG. 3  shows some internal components of the electronic book  10 , including a lightweight portable plastic housing  24  bearing the displays  18 ,  20 . Without limitation the displays may be a liquid crystal display (LCD), light emitting diode display (LED), or other appropriate electronic display technology. 
     If desired, the housing  24  may be formed with a solar charger cord receptacle  26  for receiving a connector of a cord  28  of a solar charger  30 . Charge circuitry  32  such as appropriate conversion, filtering, and amplification circuitry may be within the housing  24  in communication with the receptacle  26  to provide charge current to one or more rechargeable DC batteries  34  in the housing  24 . 
     The battery  34  powers one or more processors  36  in the housing  24 . In turn, the processor  36  can access a tangible computer-reader storage medium  38  such as but not limited to disk-based storage and/or solid state storage to execute logic herein. The medium  38  may be contained in the housing as shown or may be remotely accessed by the processor over a network. 
     Electronic book files can also be stored on the medium  38 , as well as other applications including, for example, a word processing application. It is to be understood that the processor  36  controls the displays  18 ,  20  to present user interfaces including a list of titles stored on the medium  38 , command input elements to support the logic set forth below, book text from files on the medium  38 , and an image of an input device such as a keyboard with which the user can input alpha-numeric signals. 
     In some embodiments the processor  36  may communicate with one or more position receivers  40  such as a global positioning satellite (GPS) receiver to receive geographic position information of the book  10  and present the information if desired on one of the screens  18 ,  20 . Also, in some implementations an accelerometer  42  may be provided in the housing  24  and may provide signals to the processor  36  representing acceleration and more particular angular acceleration for purposes to be shortly disclosed. 
     Turning to  FIGS. 4-6 , an example feature of present principles is shown. As shown in  FIG. 4 , the displays  18   20  can present images of respective book pages in a portrait format, i.e., with a rectangular non-square text layout in which the short dimension extends left to right and the long dimension extends top to bottom. Thus, for instance, the left display  20  may present an image of text on a book page and the right display may present an image of the next page of the book. 
     According to the example embodiment shown in  FIGS. 4-6 , the processor  36  shown in  FIG. 2  can automatically rearrange the text layout from portrait to landscape (in which the long dimension of text layout is left to right and the short dimension is top to bottom) upon receipt of a predetermined signal. Cross-referencing  FIGS. 4 and 5  as an example, should the user rotate the book  10  counterclockwise 90° as shown by the arrow  44  and as sensed by the accelerometer  42 , and the signal from the accelerometer indicates a rotation of sufficient speed and angular distance to establish a “keyboard” signal input to the processor  36 , then as shown in  FIG. 5  the text layout on the (now upper) display is automatically changed from portrait to landscape as shown. 
     Also, if desired the (now lower) display  20  is automatically caused to present an image  46  of a keyboard such as a QWERTY keyboard or other keyboard as may be dictated by the choice of language described further below, which, owing to the touch screen capability of the display  20 , may be manipulated by a user to input alpha-numeric text. Accordingly, upon receipt of the keyboard signal the processor  36  may automatically invoke a word processing application on the computer medium  38  to facilitate user input. And, the (now upper) display  18  may be caused by the processor  36  to display text received from the virtual keyboard  46 , preferably in landscape format as shown. In this way, the electronic book  10  may be quickly and automatically reconfigured from an electronic book displaying pages of text to a word processing computer. 
     Alternatively to providing an accelerometer to generate the keyboard signal and subsequent operation described above, a virtual or mechanical selector key  48  may be provided on the book  10  that a user can toggle to input the “keyboard” signal to the processor. 
     Rotating the book  10  back clockwise 90° to the orientation shown in  FIG. 4  (alternatively, toggling the selector key  48 ) can cause the processor to automatically configure the displays  18 ,  20  as shown in  FIG. 4 , i.e., back into book text-only presentation in portrait mode. 
     Additionally, should the user orient the book  10  as shown in  FIG. 4  in portrait mode and wish to simply change the displayed book page layout from portrait to landscape, as indicated by the arrow  50  the user need simply rotate the book 90° clockwise to the orientation shown in  FIG. 6 . As shown in  FIG. 6 , both displays  18 ,  20  are automatically caused to change the layout of the same text shown in Figure from portrait to landscape ( FIG. 6 ). Alternatively, a mechanical or virtual conversion key  52  may be provided on the book  10  and manipulated by a user to input a command to the processor  36  to change the book text layout from portrait to landscape. 
     Rotating the book  10  back counterclockwise 90° to the orientation shown in  FIG. 4  (alternatively, toggling the key  52 ) can cause the processor to automatically configure the displays  18 ,  20  as shown in  FIG. 4 , i.e., back into book text-only presentation in portrait mode. 
     It is to be understood that CCW rotation may be used in lieu of CW rotation to reconfigure the displays from  FIG. 4  to  FIG. 6  and that CW rotation may be used in lieu of CCW rotation to reconfigure the displays from  FIG. 4  to  FIG. 5 . 
       FIG. 7  shows example logic for illustration that may be used to reconfigure the book  10  from the layout of  FIG. 4  to the layout of  FIG. 5 , it being understood that equivalent logic may be used to reconfigure the book  10  from the layout of  FIG. 4  to the layout of  FIG. 6 . Commencing at block  54  in general a “reconfigure” signal is received from, e.g., the accelerometer  42  or selector key  48  as described above, with the “reconfigure” signal in the context of  FIGS. 4 and 6  being regarded as a “keyboard” signal since it automatically reconfigures the book  10  to display an image of a virtual keyboard. To this end, when the accelerometer is used, the processor may determine whether the signal received from the accelerometer satisfies a threshold in the appropriate direction of rotation and if so, determine that the user has evinced a desire to enter the landscape-keyboard mode by rotating the book  10  sufficiently quickly and far. 
     At block  56  the image  46  of the keyboard is presented as described in landscape layout, while at block  58  associated text is presented in landscape on the upper display as shown in  FIG. 6 . Block  60  simply indicates that another signal (termed “book” signal for convenience) may be received from the accelerometer  42  or selector key  48  to cause the book to automatically reassume the portrait mode layout at block  62  and as shown in  FIG. 4 . 
     In some embodiments the image  46  of the virtual keyboard presents the images of keys according to a language selected by a user. Block  64  of  FIG. 7  indicates that such a language selection may be made from a user interface screen that permits the user to select preferences including language. For example, if “English” is selected and the “keyboard” signal subsequently received at block  66 , the image  46  may be of a QWERTY keyboard as used in English input devices at block  68 . Other keyboard images may be used, e.g., a kanji-style keyboard image may be presented if “Japanese” is the selected language, or a Cyrillic keyboard image may be displayed if “Russian” is the selected language, and so on. To this end, the storage medium  38  may store multiple keyboard images, one for each language that the user is permitted to select. 
     While the particular ELECTRONIC BOOK WITH ENHANCED FEATURES is herein shown and described in detail, it is to be understood that the subject matter which is encompassed by the present invention is limited only by the claims.