Selective input signal rejection and modification

• US 10,452,174 B2
• Filed: 04/17/2017
• Issued: 10/22/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 12/08/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Inventors: Westerman, Wayne Carl, Mullens, Christopher Tenzin
• Primary Examiner(s): Dharia, Prabodh M
• Application Number:
  US15/489,646
• Publication Number:
  US 20170220165A1
• Time in Patent Office: 918 Days
• Field of Search: 345156, 345173-814, 178 1801- 1809, 178 1901- 1907, 338 68
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04104 Multi-touch detection in digitiser, i.e. details about the simultaneous detection of a plurality of touching locations, e.g. multiple fingers or pen and finger
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04105 Pressure sensors for measuring the pressure or force exerted on the touch surface without providing the touch position
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04808 Several contacts: gestures triggering a specific function, e.g. scrolling, zooming, right-click, when the user establishes several contacts with the surface simultaneously; e.g. using several fingers or a combination of fingers and pen
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/017 Gesture based interaction, e.g. based on a set of recognized hand gestures interaction based on gestures traced on a digitiser G06F3/04883
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/03543 Mice or pucks G06F3/03541 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/03547 Touch pads, in which fingers can move on a surface
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/041 Digitisers, e.g. for touch screens or touch pads, characterised by the transducing means
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0412 Digitisers structurally integrated in a display
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0416 Control or interface arrangements specially adapted for digitisers
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04186 Touch location disambiguation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0488 using a touch-screen or digitiser, e.g. input of commands through traced gestures

Abstract

This application is directed to modifying a sensed velocity at a device (e.g., a clickable trackpad) based on a time-dependent click memory variable (CMV). For example, if a touch having a certain velocity is detected when a selection (pick) button is pressed or released, the velocity can be initially suppressed under the presumption that the movement was inadvertent. However, over time that presumption fades, and the CMV can be used to gradually allow the full velocity of the touch to be recognized, under the new presumption that the movement was intentional.

Claims

1. An electronic device comprising:

an input device including one or more first sensors and one or more second sensors, the input device configured to sense at least one touch input from the one or more first sensors and one pick input from the one or more second sensors, wherein the at least one touch input has an initial sensed velocity; and

a processor communicatively coupled to the one or more first sensors and the one or more second sensors, and capable of determining a revised sensed velocity of the at least one touch input for subsequent use by the electronic device, wherein determining the revised sensed velocity comprises modifying the initial sensed velocity based on a variable that changes over time after a pick input is detected.

2. The electronic device of claim 1, the processor further capable of resetting the variable when the pick input changes.

3. The electronic device of claim 2, the processor further capable of decaying the variable after the reset.

4. The electronic device of claim 1, the processor further capable of determining the revised sensed velocity only when the variable is nonzero.

5. The electronic device of claim 1, wherein the revised sensed velocity is proportional to the initial sensed velocity except for a dead-zone range of the initial sensed velocity.

6. The electronic device of claim 1, the processor further capable of setting the revised sense velocity to zero when the initial sensed velocity is below or equal to a threshold, and setting the revised sensed velocity to a value lower than the initial sensed velocity when the initial sensed velocity is above the threshold.

7. The electronic device of claim 6, wherein after a predetermined time from the sensed pick input, the revised sensed velocity equals the initial sensed velocity.

8. The electronic device of claim 1, the processor further capable of determining x and y components of the initial sensed velocity and the revised sensed velocity of the at least one touch input.

9. The electronic device of claim 1, wherein the electronic device is incorporated into a portable computing device.

10. A method for modifying input to an electronic device comprising:

sensing at least one touch input and one pick input, wherein the at least one touch input has an initial sensed velocity;

determining a revised sensed velocity of the at least one touch input

for subsequent use by the electronic device, wherein determining the revised sensed velocity comprises modifying the initial sensed velocity based on a variable that changes over time after a pick input is detected.

11. The method of claim 10, further comprising resetting the variable when the pick input changes.

12. The method of claim 11, further comprising decaying the variable after the reset.

13. The method of claim 10, further comprising determining the revised sensed velocity only when the variable is nonzero.

14. The method of claim 10, wherein the revised sensed velocity is proportional to the initial sensed velocity except for a dead-zone range of the initial sensed velocity.

15. The method of claim 10, further comprising setting the revised sense velocity to zero when the initial sensed velocity is below or equal to a threshold, and setting the revised sensed velocity to a value lower than the initial sensed velocity when the initial sensed velocity is above the threshold.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein after a predetermined time from the sensed pick input, the revised sensed velocity equals the initial sensed velocity.

17. The method of claim 10, further comprising determining x and y components of the initial sensed velocity and the revised sensed velocity of the at least one touch input.

18. A non-transitory computer readable storage medium storing program code for modifying input to an electronic device, the program code for causing performance of a method comprising:

sensing at least one touch input and one pick input, wherein the at least one touch input has an initial sensed velocity;

determining a revised sensed velocity of the at least one touch input

for subsequent use by the electronic device, wherein determining the revised sensed velocity comprises modifying the initial sensed velocity based on a variable that changes over time after a pick input is detected.

19. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 18, the program code further for causing performance of the method comprising resetting the variable when the pick input changes.

20. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 19, the program code further for causing performance of the method comprising decaying the variable after the reset.