Techniques to present a user interface for the visually impaired

• US 10,255,038 B2
• Filed: 04/26/2013
• Issued: 04/09/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 04/26/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Inventors: Chudge, Jarnail, Rocca, Tinisha, Mabbitt, Joanna, Day, Helen, Middlemiss, Simon, McCarthy, Stuart
• Primary Examiner(s): Brahmachari, Mandrita
• Application Number:
  US13/871,563
• Publication Number:
  US 20140325353A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,174 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04803 Split screen, i.e. subdividing the display area or the window area into separate subareas
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0481 based on specific properties of the displayed interaction object or a metaphor-based environment, e.g. interaction with desktop elements like windows or icons, or assisted by a cursor's changing behaviour or appearance
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0482 Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/167 Audio in a user interface, e.g. using voice commands for navigating, audio feedback
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 21/006 using audible presentation of the information

Abstract

Techniques to provide a user interface usable by anyone including the visually impaired are disclosed. Embodiments include dividing a display area of an electronic device into a workspace comprising a plurality of sections; associating each section with a different category; displaying a pane in a section including information for the associated category; receiving a touch gesture on a pane for a section; and outputting an audio signal comprising information of the pane. Other embodiments are described and claimed.

Claims

1. An apparatus, comprising:

a processor; and

user interface (UI) logic comprising a workspace component operative on the processor to;

divide a display area of the apparatus into a workspace comprising a plurality of sections;

divide at least one section into a plurality of subsections;

map an audible scale of frequencies to the plurality of subsections;

associate each section and subsection with a different category;

display a pane in a section having information for the associated category;

receive a touch gesture on a pane; and

output an audio signal having an audible tone mapped to the subsection of the section of the pane, the audible tone being followed by speech data to read out information about the mapped subsection of the section of the pane, an amount of the information corresponding to at least two of the touch gesture type, duration, or direction.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, the UI logic comprising a list screen component operative to:

present a list of a plurality of list items on the display area;

receive a touch gesture beginning on a first list item and continuing to a second list item at a first speed; and

output a second audio signal comprising speech data about the topic of the first list item while the touch gesture is in contact with the first list item, followed by speech data about the topic of the second list item when the touch gesture is in contact with the second list item.

3. The apparatus of claim 2, the list screen component operative to:

select a number of frequencies from the audible scale having a lowest frequency and a highest frequency, according to a number of list items in the list;

assign a first selected frequency to the first list item, and a next selected frequency to a next list item; and

output an assigned frequency for a list item when a touch gesture is received on that list item.

4. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein a duration of the touch gesture determines an amount of information output in the speech data.

5. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the audio signal comprises at least one of:

a text to speech output of the information; and

a tone associated with at least one of a type of the touch gesture and the pane receiving the touch gesture.

6. The apparatus of claim 1, the UI logic operative to:

receive a command directive to re-position a section to a different location on the display area; and

move the section to the different location.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, the UI logic operative to:

use a section map from an application to associate each section and subsection with a category.

8. The apparatus of claim 7, the UI logic operative to:

display information from the application in the panes.

9. A computer-implemented method, comprising:

dividing a display area of an electronic device into a workspace comprising a plurality of application independent sections;

associating each section with a different application dependent category and a different tone;

displaying a pane in a section including information for the associated category;

receiving a touch gesture on the pane for the section; and

outputting an audio signal comprising information of the pane and according to a tone of the section, the audio signal having an audible tone followed by speech data to read out information about the section of the pane, an amount of the information corresponding to at least two of the touch gesture type, duration, or direction.

10. The computer-implemented method of claim 9, comprising:

dividing at least one section into a plurality of subsections;

associating each subsection with a different category; and

displaying a pane in each subsection.

11. The computer-implemented method of claim 9, comprising:

presenting a list of a plurality of list items on the display area;

receiving a touch gesture beginning on a first list item and continuing to a next list item at a first speed;

outputting a second audio signal comprising speech data about a title of the list item while the touch gesture is in contact with the first list item, followed by speech data about the topic of the next list item when the touch gesture is in contact with the next list item.

12. The computer-implemented method of claim 11, comprising:

selecting a number of frequencies from an audible scale having a lowest frequency and a highest frequency, according to a number of list items in the list;

assigning a first selected frequency to the first list item, and a next selected frequency to a next list item; and

outputting an assigned frequency for a list item when a touch gesture is received on that list item.

13. The computer-implemented method of claim 11, comprising:

deleting a list item from the list in response to a first slide gesture; and

saving the workspace in response to a second slide gesture having a direction different from a direction of the first slide gesture.

14. The computer-implemented method of claim 9, comprising:

determining an amount of information to output in the audio signal according to a duration of the touch gesture.

15. The computer-implemented method of claim 9, wherein outputting the audio signal comprises outputting at least one of:

a text to speech output of the information; and

a tone associated with at least one of a type of the touch gesture and the pane receiving the touch gesture.

16. At least one computer-readable storage memory unit comprising instructions that, when executed, cause a system to:

divide a display area of an electronic device into a workspace comprising a plurality of sections that are application independent;

divide at least one section into a plurality of subsections;

associate each section and subsection with a different category that is application dependent;

display a pane in a section having a plurality of items for the associated category;

associate a different sound to each item of the plurality of items;

receive a touch gesture on the section in the pane; and

output an audio signal comprising at least one sound associated with an item of the plurality of items, the at least one sound being followed by speech data to read out information about the item, an amount of the information corresponding to at least two of the touch gesture type, duration, or direction.

17. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 16, comprising instructions that when executed cause the system to:

present a list of a plurality of list items on the display area;

receive a touch gesture beginning on a first list item and continuing to a second list item at a first speed;

output a second audio signal comprising speech data about the topic of the first list item while the touch gesture is in contact with the first list item, followed by speech data about the topic of the second list item when the touch gesture is in contact with the second list item.

18. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 17, comprising instructions that when executed cause the system to:

select a number of frequencies from an audible scale having a lowest frequency and a highest frequency, according to a number of list items in the list;

assign a first selected frequency to the first list item, and a next selected frequency to a next list item; and

output an assigned frequency for a list item when a touch gesture is received on that list item.

19. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 16, comprising instructions that when executed cause the system to:

receive second touch gesture on a pane; and

open at least one of a list and a second workspace in place of the workspace.

20. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 16, wherein the instructions for outputting the audio signal comprise instructions that when executed cause the system to output at least one of:

a text to speech output of the information; and

a tone associated with at least one of a type of the touch gesture and the pane receiving the touch gesture.