User interface for a portable digital video camera
In one embodiment, a driver determines a current operating mode for a digital video camera and activates a plurality of interface buttons, where each activated interface button includes a visual indication of activation to a user. The driver receives a command to change from the current operating mode to a different operating mode and, in response, deactivates one or more of the interface buttons. Each such deactivated interface button does not include the visual indication of activation to the user. Other embodiments include computer-readable media and systems configured to implement the functionality of the driver described above. Yet other embodiments include a unique interface button configuration physically designed to enhance the ease of use of a digital video camera.
1 . A method for operating a digital video camera, comprising:
determining a current operating mode for the digital video camera;
activating a plurality of interface buttons based on the first operating mode, wherein each activated interface button includes a visual indication of activation to a user;
receiving a command to change from the current operating mode to a different operating mode for the digital video camera; and
deactivating one or more of the plurality of interface buttons in response to the command, wherein the one or more deactivated interface buttons do not include the visual indication of activation to the user in the different operating mode.
2 . The method according to claim 1 , wherein the plurality of interface buttons comprises a left button, a right button, an increase button, a decrease button, a play/pause button, and a delete button.
3 . The method according to claim 1 , wherein the current operating mode comprises a ready mode, and further comprising the step of causing an image corresponding to a scene to be captured by the digital video camera to be displayed on a digital viewfinder.
4 . The method according to claim 3 , wherein one of the plurality of interface buttons comprises an increase button, and further comprising the steps of receiving a user selection of the increase button, and, in response, causing a magnification factor associated with the image to be increased.
5 . The method according to claim 3 , wherein one of the plurality of interface buttons comprises a decrease button, and further comprising the steps of receiving a user selection of the decrease button, and, in response, causing a magnification factor associated with the image to be decreased.
6 . The method according to claim 1 , wherein the different operating mode comprises a record mode, and a composite digital video having a video portion and an audio portion is captured by the digital video camera.
7 . The method according to claim 6 , wherein the plurality of interface buttons comprises a left button, a right button, a play/pause button, and a delete button, and wherein each of the left button, the right button, the play/pause button, and the delete button is deactivated and does not include the visual indication of activation to the user.
8 . The method according to claim 6 , wherein a user selection of the increase button causes a magnification factor associated with the composite digital video being captured to be increased, and a user selection of the decrease button causes a magnification factor associated with the composite digital video being captured to be decreased.
9 . The method according to claim 1 , wherein the different operating mode comprises a playback mode, and a composite digital video file stored with the digital video camera is displayed on a digital viewfinder.
10 . The method according to claim 9 , wherein one of the plurality of interface buttons comprises an increase button, a decrease button, and a play/pause button, and further comprising the step of receiving a user selection of the play/pause button, and, in response, causing the different operating mode to change to a pause mode.
11 . The method according to claim 10 , further comprising the step of deactivating the increase button and the decrease button, wherein the increase button and the decrease button do not include the visual indication of activation to the user.
12 . The method according to claim 11 , further comprising the step of receiving a user selection of the play/pause button, and, in response, causing the different operating mode to change back to the playback mode and resuming playback of the composite digital video file.
13 . The method according to claim 9 , wherein one of the plurality of interface buttons comprises a left button, and further comprising the step of receiving a user selection of the left button, and, in response, causing a previous frame of the composite digital video file to be displayed to the user on the digital viewfinder.
14 . The method according to claim 9 , wherein one of the plurality of interface buttons comprises a right button, and further comprising the step of receiving a user selection of the right button, and, in response, causing a subsequent frame of the composite digital video file to be displayed to the user on the digital viewfinder.
15 . The method according to claim 9 , wherein one of the plurality of interface buttons comprises an increase button, and further comprising the step of receiving a user selection of the increase button, and, in response, causing a volume associated with the composite digital video file to be increased.
16 . The method according to claim 9 , wherein one of the plurality of interface buttons comprises a decrease button, and further comprising the step of receiving a user selection of the decrease button, and, in response, causing a volume associated with the composite digital video file to be decreased.
17 . The method according to claim 1 , wherein the plurality of interface buttons comprises an increase button and a decrease button, the different operating mode is a delete mode, each of the increase button and the decrease button is deactivated and does not include the visual indication of activation to the user.
18 . The method according to claim 17 , further comprising the step of receiving a user selection to delete a currently selected composite digital video file stored with the digital video camera.
19 . The method according to claim 17 , further comprising the step of receiving a user selection to delete all composite digital video files stored with the digital video camera.
20 . The method according to claim 1 , wherein a first interface button in the plurality of interface buttons provides a particular function when activated in the current operating mode for the digital video camera, and the first interface button provides no function when deactivated in the different operating mode for the digital video camera.
21 . The method according to claim 1 , wherein each activated interface button comprises a touch-screen button displayed on a display screen and can be engaged by the user by touching the display screen.
22 . The method according to claim 21 , wherein the first interface button, when deactivated, is removed from the display screen and not displayed to the user.
23 . The method according to claim 21 , wherein the first interface button, when deactivated, is visually distinguished from the activated buttons on the display screen.
24 . The method according to claim 1 , wherein each interface button in the plurality of interface buttons is associated with a different embedded light emitting diode (LED) and can be engaged by the user in an electrically conductive manner, and further comprising the steps of:
causing each embedded LED to be illuminated to reflect the current operating mode for the digital video camera to the user; and
causing the embedded LED associated with the one or more deactivated interface buttons not to be illuminated to reflect the different operating mode to the user.
25 . The method according to claim 24 , wherein each interface button in the plurality of interface buttons is implemented as a capacitive-touch button.
26 . The method according to claim 1 , wherein the command is generated based on a user selection.
27 . The method according to claim 1 , wherein the command is generated by components within the digital video camera is not based on a user selection.
28 . A computer-readable medium storing instructions, that when executed by a processor, cause a driver to operate a digital video camera, by performing the steps of:
determining a current operating mode for the digital video camera;
activating a plurality of interface buttons based on the first operating mode, wherein each activated interface button includes a visual indication of activation to a user;
receiving a command to change from the current operating mode to a different operating mode for the digital video camera; and
deactivating one or more of the plurality of interface buttons in response to the command, wherein the one or more deactivated interface buttons do not include the visual indication of activation to the user in the different operating mode.
29 . The computer-readable medium according to claim 28 , wherein the plurality of interface buttons comprises a left button, a right button, an increase button, a decrease button, a play/pause button, and a delete button.
30 . The computer-readable medium according to claim 28 , wherein the current operating mode comprises a ready mode, and further comprising the step of causing an image corresponding to a scene to be captured by the digital video camera to be displayed on a digital viewfinder.
31 . The computer-readable medium according to claim 30 , wherein one of the plurality of interface buttons comprises an increase button, and further comprising the steps of receiving a user selection of the increase button, and, in response, causing a magnification factor associated with the image to be increased.
32 . The computer-readable medium according to claim 30 , wherein one of the plurality of interface buttons comprises a decrease button, and further comprising the steps of receiving a user selection of the decrease button, and, in response, causing a magnification factor associated with the image to be decreased.
33 . The computer-readable medium according to claim 28 , wherein the different operating mode comprises a record mode, and a composite digital video having a video portion and an audio portion is captured by the digital video camera.
34 . The computer-readable medium according to claim 33 , wherein the plurality of interface buttons comprises a left button, a right button, a play/pause button, and a delete button, and wherein each of the left button, the right button, the play/pause button, and the delete button is deactivated and does not include the visual indication of activation to the user.
35 . The computer-readable medium according to claim 33 , wherein a user selection of the increase button causes a magnification factor associated with the composite digital video being captured to be increased, and a user selection of the decrease button causes a magnification factor associated with the composite digital video being captured to be decreased.
36 . The computer-readable medium according to claim 28 , wherein the different operating mode comprises a playback mode, and a composite digital video file stored with the digital video camera is displayed on a digital viewfinder.
37 . The computer-readable medium according to claim 36 , wherein one of the plurality of interface buttons comprises an increase button, a decrease button, and a play/pause button, and further comprising the step of receiving a user selection of the play/pause button, and, in response, causing the different operating mode to change to a pause mode.
38 . The computer-readable medium according to claim 37 , further comprising the step of deactivating the increase button and the decrease button, wherein the increase button and the decrease button do not include the visual indication of activation to the user.
39 . The computer-readable medium according to claim 38 , further comprising the step of receiving a user selection of the play/pause button, and, in response, causing the different operating mode to change back to the playback mode and resuming playback of the composite digital video file.
40 . The computer-readable medium according to claim 36 , wherein one of the plurality of interface buttons comprises a left button, and further comprising the step of receiving a user selection of the left button, and, in response, causing a previous frame of the composite digital video file to be displayed to the user on the digital viewfinder.
41 . The computer-readable medium according to claim 36 , wherein one of the plurality of interface buttons comprises a right button, and further comprising the step of receiving a user selection of the right button, and, in response, causing a subsequent frame of the composite digital video file to be displayed to the user on the digital viewfinder.
42 . The computer-readable medium according to claim 36 , wherein one of the plurality of interface buttons comprises an increase button, and further comprising the step of receiving a user selection of the increase button, and, in response, causing a volume associated with the composite digital video file to be increased.
43 . The computer-readable medium according to claim 36 , wherein one of the plurality of interface buttons comprises a decrease button, and further comprising the step of receiving a user selection of the decrease button, and, in response, causing a volume associated with the composite digital video file to be decreased.
44 . The computer-readable medium according to claim 28 , wherein the plurality of interface buttons comprises an increase button and a decrease button, the different operating mode is a delete mode, each of the increase button and the decrease button is deactivated and does not include the visual indication of activation to the user.
45 . The computer-readable medium according to claim 44 , further comprising the step of receiving a user selection to delete a currently selected composite digital video file stored with the digital video camera.
46 . The computer-readable medium according to claim 44 , further comprising the step of receiving a user selection to delete all composite digital video files stored with the digital video camera.
47 . The computer-readable medium according to claim 28 , wherein a first interface button in the plurality of interface buttons provides a particular function when activated in the current operating mode for the digital video camera, and the first interface button provides no function when deactivated in the different operating mode for the digital video camera.
48 . The computer-readable medium according to claim 28 , wherein each activated interface button comprises a touch-screen button displayed on a display screen and can be engaged by the user by touching the display screen.
49 . The computer-readable medium according to claim 48 , wherein the first interface button, when deactivated, is removed from the display screen and not displayed to the user.
50 . The computer-readable medium according to claim 48 , wherein the first interface button, when deactivated, is visually distinguished from the activated buttons on the display screen.
51 . The computer-readable medium according to claim 28 , wherein each interface button in the plurality of interface buttons is associated with a different embedded light emitting diode (LED) and can be engaged by the user in an electrically conductive manner, and further comprising the steps of:
causing each embedded LED to be illuminated to reflect the current operating mode for the digital video camera to the user; and
causing the embedded LED associated with the one or more deactivated interface buttons not to be illuminated to reflect the different operating mode to the user.
52 . The computer-readable medium according to claim 51 , wherein each interface button in the plurality of interface buttons is implemented as a capacitive-touch button.
53 . The computer-readable medium according to claim 28 , wherein the command is generated based on a user selection.
54 . The computer-readable medium according to claim 28 , wherein the command is generated by components within the digital video camera is not based on a user selection.
55 . A hand-held electronic device, comprising:
a plurality of interface buttons that can be activated or deactivated based on an operating mode for the electronic device;
a processor; and
a memory storing program instructions that, when executed by the processor, configure the processor to:
determine a first operating mode for the electronic device,
activate one or more of the interface buttons based on the first operating mode, wherein each of the one or more activated interface buttons includes a visual indication of activation to a user,
receive a command to change from the first operating mode to a second operating mode for the digital video camera, and
deactivate at least one of the one or more activated interface buttons in response to the command, wherein the at least one deactivated interface button does not include the visual indication of activation to the user in the second operating mode.
56 . The hand-held electronic device according to claim 55 , wherein each interface button is associated with different embedded light emitting diode (LED) and can be engaged by a user in an electrically conductive manner.
57 . The hand-held electronic device according to claim 56 , wherein the LED associated with each of the one or more activated interface buttons is illuminated, and the LED associated with the at least one deactivated interface button is not illuminated.
58 . The hand-held electronic device according to claim 56 , wherein each of the plurality of interface buttons is implemented as a capacitive-touch button.
59 . The hand-held electronic device according to claim 55 , wherein each of the one or more activated interface button comprises a touch-screen button displayed on a display screen and can be engaged by the user by touching the display screen.
60 . The hand-held electronic device according to claim 59 , wherein the at least one deactivated interface button is removed from the display screen and not displayed to the user.
61 . The hand-held electronic device according to claim 59 , wherein the at least one deactivated interface button is visually distinguished from the activated buttons on the display screen.
62 . The hand-held electronic device according to claim 55 , wherein the hand-held electronic device is a digital video camera.
63 . The hand-held electronic device according to claim 62 , further comprising a data connector configured to couple the hand-held device to a port associated with a computer system.
64 . The hand-held electronic device according to claim 63 , wherein the hand-held device and the computer system are each resting on a flat surface and the data connector is coupled to the port.
65 . The hand-held electronic device according to claim 64 , wherein the data connector is elevated from the flat surface by a distance that is substantially equal to a distance between the flat surface and the port.
66 . The hand-held electronic device according to claim 55 , wherein the command is generated based on a user selection.
67 . The hand-held electronic device according to claim 55 , wherein the command is generated by components within the digital video camera is not based on a user selection.
68 . A hand-held device for recording digital video, comprising:
a memory;
a display screen for displaying video content;
a lens configured to capture light associated with a scene;
a digital video image sensor configured to receive the captured light from the lens and to convert the captured light into a video sequence;
a processor configured to receive the video sequence, store the video sequence in the memory, and cause the video sequence to be displayed on the display screen;
a first set of interface buttons for receiving user input, wherein each interface button in the first set is substantially co-planar with the display screen; and
a second set of interface buttons for receiving user input, wherein each interface button in the second set is recessed and/or concave with respect to the display screen.
69 . The hand-held device according to claim 68 , further comprising a data connector configured to couple the hand-held device to a port associated with a computer system.
70 . The hand-held device according to claim 69 , wherein the hand-held device and the computer system are each resting on a flat surface and the data connector is coupled to the port, and the data connector is elevated from the flat surface by a distance that is substantially equal to a distance between the flat surface and the port.
71 . The hand-held device according to claim 68 , wherein the first set includes a left button, a right button, an increase button, and a decrease button, and the second set includes a play/pause button, a delete button, and a record button.