User interface methods and apparatus for controlling the visual display of maps having selectable map elements in mobile communications devices

摘要

One illustrative method for use in controlling user interface operation of a communication device when visually displaying a map involves the steps of causing a viewable map region of the map to be visually displayed in a display, the viewable map region having a plurality of selectable map elements; maintaining a list of element identifiers which includes element identifiers corresponding to the selectable map elements in the viewable map region, each element identifier being associated with a pair of x, y coordinates for visual display; controlling end user selection of the selectable map elements via a positioning mechanism in left and right directions in accordance with a numeric order of the x-coordinates; controlling end user selection of the selectable map elements via the positioning mechanism in up and down directions in accordance with a numeric order of the y-coordinates; and repeating the acts of causing, maintaining, and controlling for a next viewable map region of the map having a next plurality of selectable map elements. The end user selection may be controlled specifically by monitoring to detect a forward (or reverse) direction positioning signal from the positioning mechanism; in response to detecting the forward (or reverse) direction positioning signal: causing a cursor in the display to be moved in a forward (or reverse) direction so as to select a next (or previous) selectable map element in the viewable map region, but if a last (or first) selectable map element in the viewable map region is currently selected when the forward (or reverse) direction positioning signal is detected, causing the viewable map region of the map to be panned in the display in the forward (or reverse) direction.