Gesture-based workflow progression

• US 10,025,459 B2
• Filed: 03/06/2014
• Issued: 07/17/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 03/14/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Vmware LLC (Broadcom, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: AirWatch LLC (Broadcom, Inc.)
• Inventors: Eye, Andrew, Cianfichi, Adam
• Primary Examiner(s): To, Jennifer N
• Assistant Examiner(s): Spratt, Beau D
• Application Number:
  US14/199,630
• Publication Number:
  US 20140282243A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,594 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0482 Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0488 using a touch-screen or digitiser, e.g. input of commands through traced gestures
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04883 for inputting data by handwriting, e.g. gesture or text
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04886 by partitioning the display area of the touch-screen or the surface of the digitising tablet into independently controllable areas, e.g. virtual keyboards or menus

Abstract

Methods, systems, and apparatus, including computer programs encoded on a computer storage medium, for displaying, by the one or more processors, at least one graphical representation associated with an electronic document on a touchscreen display; and receiving, by the one or more processors, user input to the at least one graphical representation, the user input indicating a touchscreen gesture to the touchscreen display, and in response: determining a type of the touchscreen gesture; determining a degree of the touchscreen gesture; identifying one or more actions based on the type and the degree, each action of the one or more actions being executable to progress through a workflow; and displaying one or more action elements on the touchscreen display, each action element representing an action of the one or more actions.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method executed using one or more processors, the method comprising:

displaying, by the one or more processors, at least one graphical representation associated with an electronic document on a touchscreen display, the electronic document corresponding to an email message; and

receiving, by the one or more processors, user input to the at least one graphical representation, the user input indicating a touchscreen gesture to the touchscreen display, and in response;

generating a horizontal sliding animation of the at least one graphical representation towards a side of the touchscreen display that corresponds to a direction of the touchscreen gesture;

determining whether a type of the touchscreen gesture is a positive gesture based upon whether the direction of the touchscreen gesture corresponds to the positive gesture;

determining a degree of the touchscreen gesture by;

determining a length of the touchscreen gesture;

comparing the length to a first threshold;

in response to determining that the length is greater than the first threshold;

comparing the length to a second threshold;

in response to determining that the length is less than the second threshold, specifying that the degree of the touchscreen gesture is a first degree; and

in response to determining that the length is greater than the second threshold, specifying that the degree of the touchscreen gesture is a second degree;

identifying one or more actions based on the type and the degree, each action of the one or more actions being executable to take a first action or a second action on the email message;

displaying the first action from the one or more actions corresponding to the first degree on the touchscreen display by generating a first modified at least one graphical representation within and during the horizontal sliding animation in response to the length being less than the second threshold;

displaying the second action from the one or more actions corresponding to the second degree on the touchscreen display by generating a second modified at least one graphical representation within and during the horizontal sliding animation in response to the length being greater than the second threshold; and

upon detecting completion of user input, taking the first action or the second action on the email message.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising receiving user input to an action element and, in response, executing a respective action to progress through a workflow.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the type is based on the direction of the touchscreen gesture relative to the touchscreen display.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining whether the type of the touchscreen gesture is a negative gesture based upon whether the direction of the touchscreen gesture corresponds to the negative gesture.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the second threshold is greater than the first threshold.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

creating a task associated with the electronic document in response to completion of receiving the user input and in response to determining that the degree is the first degree.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the task is associated with a task data record, the task data record including one or more fields, with data of the one or more fields populated with data associated with one or more fields of a document data record associated with the electronic document.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the task data record includes a title field, an assignee field, and an assignor field, the title field populated with data associated with a subject field of the document data record, the assignee field populated with data associated with a recipient field of the document data record, and the assignor field populated with data associated with a sender field of the document data record.

9. The method of claim 6, wherein creating the task further comprises adding one or more fields to a document data record associated with the electronic document, the one or more fields based on the task.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein a task data record is associated with a document data record, the method further comprising:

synchronizing one or more fields of the document data record with one or more fields of the task data record.

11. The method of claim 6, wherein in response to creating the task:

displaying one or more additional action elements on the touchscreen display, each additional action element representing an additional action of the one or more additional actions.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the one or more additional action elements include a more action element and an undo action element.

13. The method of claim 11, further comprising:

in response to receiving user input selecting the more action element, displaying one or more secondary action elements on the touchscreen display, the one or more secondary action elements including a task action element, a due date action element, and an assignee action element.

14. The method of claim 4, wherein determining the degree of the touchscreen gesture comprises:

in response to determining that the touchscreen gesture is a negative touchscreen gesture;

comparing the length to a third threshold;

in response to determining that the length is greater than the third threshold;

comparing the length to a fourth threshold;

in response to determining that the length is less than the fourth threshold, displaying a third action element on the touchscreen display; and

in response to determining that the length is greater than the fourth threshold, displaying a fourth action element on the touchscreen display.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the fourth threshold is greater than the third threshold.

16. The method of claim 14, wherein the third action element is an archive action element, and the fourth action element is a delete action element.

17. A non-transitory computer-readable medium coupled to one or more processors having instructions stored thereon which, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to perform operations comprising:

displaying, by the one or more processors, at least one graphical representation associated with an electronic document on a touchscreen display; and

receiving, by the one or more processors, user input to the at least one graphical representation, the user input indicating a touchscreen gesture to the touchscreen display, and in response;

generating a horizontal sliding animation of the at least one graphical representation towards a side of the touchscreen display that corresponds to a direction of the touchscreen gesture;

determining whether a type of the touchscreen gesture is a positive gesture based upon whether the direction of the touchscreen gesture corresponds to the positive gesture;

determining a degree of the touchscreen gesture by;

determining a length of the touchscreen gesture;

comparing the length to a first threshold;

in response to determining that the length is greater than the first threshold;

comparing the length to a second threshold;

in response to determining that the length is less than the second threshold, specifying that the degree of the touchscreen gesture is a first degree; and

in response to determining that the length is greater than the second threshold, specifying that the degree of the touchscreen gesture is a second degree;

identifying one or more actions based on the type and the degree, each action of the one or more actions being executable to take a first action or a second action on the email message;

displaying the first action from the one or more actions corresponding to the first degree on the touchscreen display by generating a first modified at least one graphical representation within and during the horizontal sliding animation in response to the length being less than the second threshold;

displaying the second action from the one or more action elements corresponding to the second degree on the touchscreen display by generating a second modified at least one graphical representation within and during the horizontal sliding animation in response to the length being greater than the second threshold; and

upon detecting completion of user input, taking the first action or the second action on the email message.

18. A computing device, comprising:

one or more processors; and

a computer-readable medium coupled to the one or more processors and having instructions stored thereon which, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to perform operations comprising;

displaying, by the one or more processors, at least one graphical representation associated with an electronic document on a touchscreen display; and

receiving, by the one or more processors, user input to the at least one graphical representation, the user input indicating a touchscreen gesture to the touchscreen display, and in response;

generating a horizontal sliding animation of the at least one graphical representation towards a side of the touchscreen display that corresponds to a direction of the touchscreen gesture;

determining whether a type of the touchscreen gesture is a positive gesture based upon whether the direction of the touchscreen gesture corresponds to the positive gesture;

determining a degree of the touchscreen gesture by;

determining a length of the touchscreen gesture;

comparing the length to a first threshold;

in response to determining that the length is greater than the first threshold;

comparing the length to a second threshold;

in response to determining that the length is less than the second threshold, specifying that the degree of the touchscreen gesture is a first degree; and

in response to determining that the length is greater than the second threshold, specifying that the degree of the touchscreen gesture is a second degree;

identifying one or more actions based on the type and the degree, each action of the one or more actions being executable to progress through a workflow;

displaying a first action from the one or more action elements on the touchscreen display by generating a first modified at least one graphical representation within the horizontal sliding animation in response to the length being less than the second threshold;

displaying a second action from the one or more action elements corresponding to the second degree on the touchscreen display by generating a second modified at least one graphical representation within and during the horizontal sliding animation in response to the length being greater than the second threshold; and

upon detecting completion of user input, taking the first action or the second action on the email message.