Method for displaying approached interaction areas

• US 20060114233A1
• Filed: 11/10/2004
• Published: 06/01/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 11/10/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nokia Technologies Oy (Nokia Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Nokia Corporation
• Inventors: Radivojevic, Zoran, Lehtiniemi, Reijo
• Granted Patent: US 8,334,837 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 345/168
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0426 tracking fingers with respect to a virtual keyboard projected or printed on the surface virtual keyboards on touch screens G06F3/04886

Abstract

A method, a computer program and a computer program product for interacting with a device via an interaction unit, wherein the interaction unit comprises a plurality of interaction areas that can be activated by an activation unit to effect the interaction, the method comprising detecting approached interaction areas, wherein the approached interaction areas are interaction areas that are approached by the activation unit without yet being activated; displaying representations of the approached interaction areas on a display of the device. The invention further relates to the device itself and to a module for such a device.

Claims

1. A method for interacting with a device via an interaction unit, wherein said interaction unit comprises a plurality of interaction areas that can be activated by an activation unit to effect said interaction, said method comprising:

detecting approached interaction areas, wherein said approached interaction areas are interaction areas that are approached by said activation unit without yet being activated; and

displaying representations of said approached interaction areas on a display of said device.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein representations of at least a portion of said plurality of interaction areas are displayed on said display in a first representation mode, and wherein said representations of said approached interaction areas are displayed on said display in a second representation mode.

3. The method according to claim 1, further comprising:

detecting activated interaction areas, wherein said activated interaction areas are interaction areas that have been activated by said activation unit; and

displaying representations of said activated interaction areas on said display.

4. The method according to claim 3, wherein said representations of said approached interaction areas are displayed in a first representation mode, and wherein said representations of said activated interaction areas are displayed on said display in a second representation mode.

5. The method according to claim 3, wherein representations of at least a portion of said plurality of interaction areas are displayed on said display in a first representation mode, wherein said representations of said approached interaction areas are displayed on said display in a second representation mode, and wherein said representations of said activated interaction areas are displayed on said display in a third representation mode.

6. The method according to claim 1, wherein said representations of said approached interaction areas displayed on said display preserve information on the positioning of said interaction areas on said interaction unit.

7. The method according to claim 1, wherein said representations of said approached interaction areas displayed on said display cover other content displayed on said display.

8. The method according to claim 1, wherein said representations of said approached interaction areas displayed on said display semi-transparently overlay other content displayed on said display.

9. The method according to claim 1, wherein said representations of said approached interaction areas are displayed on said display in a way that a minimum amount of interference with relevant parts of other content displayed on said display is caused.

10. The method according to claim 1, wherein said representations of said approached interaction areas are only displayed on said display if an interaction with said device is required.

11. The method according to claim 2, wherein said representations of at least a portion of said plurality of interaction areas are only displayed on said display if at least one of said interaction areas has been approached by said activation unit during a pre-defined period of time.

12. The method according to claim 1, wherein each of said interaction areas is associated with at least one interaction with said device, and wherein said associations can be re-configured.

13. The method according to claim 1, wherein said interaction unit and said display are not positioned on substantially opposite sides of said device.

14. The method according to claim 1, wherein said interaction unit and said display are positioned on substantially opposite sides of said device.

15. The method according to claim 1, wherein said interaction unit is a keyboard, and wherein said interaction areas are keys of said keyboard.

16. The method according to claim 15, wherein approached keys of said keyboard are detected by means of optic and/or electromagnetic and/or sound waves.

17. The method according to claim 15, wherein said approached keys of said keyboard are detected by means of sensors that are contained in said keyboard, and wherein said sensors are thermal and/or electric and/or optic and/or electromagnetic and/or haptic sensors.

18. The method according to claim 1, wherein said interaction unit is an optically projected virtual keyboard.

19. The method according to claim 3, wherein said interaction unit is an optically projected virtual keyboard, and wherein said steps of detecting approached interaction areas and of detecting activated interaction areas are performed by the same instance of said device.

20. The method according to claim 2, wherein said interaction areas of said interaction unit are keys of a keyboard, wherein a schematic image of at least a portion of said keyboard is at least temporarily displayed on said display, and wherein approached keys of said keyboard are accentuated by changing an appearance of said approached keys in said schematic image.

21. The method according to claim 20, wherein said appearance of said approached keys in said schematic image is changed by changing a color and/or size and/or texture of said approached keys or by furnishing said approached keys with a frame or circle or a with spot light.

22. The method according to claim 1, wherein said device is capable of text processing.

23. The method according to claim 1, wherein said device is a portable device.

24. A computer program with instructions operable to cause a processor to perform the method steps of claim 1.

25. A computer program product comprising a computer program with instructions operable to cause a processor to perform the method steps of claim 1.

26. A device, comprising:

an interaction unit, wherein said interaction unit comprises a plurality of interaction areas that can be activated by an activation unit to effect an interaction with said device;

means for detecting approached interaction areas, wherein said approached interaction areas are interaction areas that are approached by said activation unit without yet being activated; and

means arranged for displaying representations of said approached interaction areas on a display of said device.

27. A module for a device, wherein said device comprises an interaction unit, and wherein said interaction unit comprises a plurality of interaction areas that can be activated by an activation unit to effect an interaction with said device;

said module comprising;

means for detecting approached interaction areas, wherein said approached interaction areas are interaction areas that are approached by said activation unit without yet being activated; and

means arranged for displaying representations of said approached interaction areas on a display of said device.