IP Library Granted Patent US 8,259,085
Granted Patent B2
US 8,259,085 · App. 12/535,155 · Granted Sep 4, 2012

Information terminal device having a cleaning mode for cleaning touch panel and operation button

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Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 8,259,085
App. No.
12/535,155
Granted
Sep 4, 2012
Kind
B2
Abstract

An information terminal device has a touch panel and a display unit which are integrally configured, and an operation button provided around the display unit, and the information terminal device includes: a touch number counting unit operable to count number of times of touching the operation button; a touch number storing unit operable to store the number of times counted by the touch number counting unit; and a control unit operable to control the information terminal device by switching an operation mode between a normal mode for working the information terminal device according to operations of the touch panel and the operation button and a cleaning mode for cleaning the touch panel, wherein in the cleaning mode, the control unit prohibits an application from being executed according to operations of the touch panel and the operation button, and terminates the cleaning mode when the number of times of touching the operation button counted by the touch number counting unit reaches a predetermined number.

Claims (14)

1. An information terminal device comprising:

a touch panel;

a display that is integrally configured with the touch panel;

a plurality of operation buttons provided around the display and outside the touch panel;

a touch number counter configured to count a number of times that each of the operation buttons is touched;

a touch number storage configured to store the number of times counted by the touch number counter; and

a controller configured to control the information terminal device by switching an operation mode between a normal mode for working the information terminal device according to operations of the touch panel and the operation buttons and a cleaning mode for cleaning the touch panel,

wherein in the cleaning mode, the controller prohibits an application from being executed according to operations of the touch panel and the operation buttons, and terminates the cleaning mode when the number of times that each of the operation buttons is touched, counted by the touch number counter, reaches a predetermined number,

wherein the touch number counter counts the number of times that each operation button is touched in the normal mode, and

the predetermined number for each operation button is determined when the cleaning mode starts, based on the number of times that each operation button is touched, counted in the normal mode and stored in the touch number storage.

2. The information terminal device according to claim 1 , wherein

in the cleaning mode, the controller displays, on the display, a name of an operation button of the plurality of operation buttons of which the number of times that the operation button is touched is below the predetermined number, after the number of times that at least one of the plurality of operation buttons is touched reaches the predetermined number.

3. The information terminal device according to claim 1 , wherein

the controller terminates the cleaning mode, when two or more of the plurality of operation buttons are pressed at the same time after the number of times that each of the operation buttons is touched, counted by the touch number counter, reaches the corresponding predetermined number.

Assignments (3)
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Oct 6, 2014
From: GODO KAISHA IP BRIDGE 1
To: PANASONIC CORPORATION
Reel/Frame 033896/0723 →
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Feb 10, 2014
From: PANASONIC CORPORATION (FORMERLY MATSUSHITA ELECTRIC INDUSTRIAL CO., LTD.)
To: GODO KAISHA IP BRIDGE 1
Reel/Frame 032209/0630 →
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Dec 29, 2009
From: KOBAYASHI, TAKASHI
To: PANASONIC CORPORATION
Reel/Frame 023711/0736 →