Tactile device for scrolling

• US 20060236263A1
• Filed: 04/15/2005
• Published: 10/19/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 04/15/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Guimbretiere, Francois Victor Jacques Jerome, Bathiche, Steven N., Pangaro, Gian
• Granted Patent: US 7,355,595 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 715/786
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/014 Force feedback applied to GUI
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/016 Input arrangements with force or tactile feedback as computer generated output to the user
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04855 Interaction with scrollbars

Abstract

A tactile touch-sensitive device for use as an electronic input device for navigating an electronic document on a display device is described. The tactile aspect of the device provides a document location indicator, such as a protrusion or a depression, which may be perceived through the sense of touch. The device may incorporate additional features such as multiple modes of navigation, namely isotonic and isometric scrolling. Various sensors, such as force sensors and capacitive sensors, may provide the user with coarse and fine scrolling capabilities through different types of interactions with the scrollbar. The force sensors may allow the user to alter the rate of scrolling by adjusting the magnitude of force applied. Additionally, capacitive sensors may detect absolute positions of a user'"'"'s finger movement and navigate through a document pursuant to those movements.

Claims

1. A user engageable device for manipulating an electronic document with respect to a display comprising:

a group of individually movable elements, and a translating contour changing member configured to change an upper contour formed by the group of individually movable elements.

2. The user engageable device of claim 1, wherein the group of individually movable elements includes at least six laterally adjacent keys.

3. The user engageable device of claim 2, wherein the group of individually movable elements includes at least ten laterally adjacent keys.

4. The user engageable device of claim 3, wherein the group of individually movable elements includes at least thirty laterally adjacent keys.

5. he user engageable device of claim 1, wherein the translating contour changing member is configured to form a depression in the upper contour formed by the group of individually movable elements.

6. The user engageable device of claim 1, wherein the translating contour changing member is configured to form a raised protrusion in the upper contour formed by the group of individually movable elements.

7. The user engageable device of claim 1, wherein each of the individually movable elements of the group of individually movable elements pivots about a common axis.

8. The user engageable device of claim 1, further comprising a motor coupled to the translating contour changing member for moving the translating contour changing member along an axis.

9. The user engageable device of claim 8, further comprising a controller coupled to the motor and configured to provide a signal to the motor for moving the translating contour changing member to produce a change in the upper contour formed by the group of individually movable elements at a mapped location generally corresponding to a viewable portion of the electronic document with respect to a beginning and an end of the electronic document.

10. The user engageable device of claim 1, wherein the group of individually movable elements includes at least ten laterally adjacent keys, and further comprising a touch sensitive strip sensor extending through the laterally adjacent keys, the touch sensitive strip sensor configured to sense a downward force applied to the upper surface of the laterally adjacent keys.

11. The user engageable device of claim 1, further comprising a first sensing system for sensing a user applied downward force upon the upper contour.

12. The user engageable device of claim 11, further comprising a second sensing system, spaced from the first sensing system, the second sensing system for sensing a user applied force to the plurality of movable elements in a direction perpendicular to a downward force.

13. A user engageable device for moving an electronic document with respect to a display comprising:

an elongated scrollbar oriented along a first axis, the scrollbar including a finger-engageable absolute positioning sensing system extending along the first axis, and a finger-engageable isometric sensing system having a contacting region, wherein the contacting region of the finger-engageable isometric sensing system is displaceable along the first axis.

14. The user engageable device of claim 13, wherein the finger-engageable absolute positioning sensing system includes an upper surface, and the contacting region of the finger-engageable isometric sensing system includes an upper surface with a different contour than that of the upper surface of contacting region of the finger-engageable absolute positioning sensing system.

15. he user engageable device of claim 14, further comprising a sensor for determining the application and amount of an isometric force applied to the contacting region of the finger-engageable isometric sensing system, wherein scrolling of the electronic document may be performed based on a rate corresponding to a sensed amount of an isometric force.

16. The user engageable device of claim 14, wherein the elongated scrollbar has first and second ends, and wherein the position of the contacting region of the finger-engageable isometric sensing system relative to the first and second ends of the elongated scrollbar represents the currently displayed location in the electronic document relative to a beginning and an end of the electronic document.

17. The user engageable device of claim 14, wherein the elongated scrollbar has first and second ends, wherein a downward force applied to a location on the scrollbar moves the electronic document relative to the display to a location generally corresponding to the relative position of the downward force location relative to the first and second ends of the scrollbar.

18. The user engageable device of claim 13, further comprising a plurality of parallel movable keys including an upper profile, and said contacting region of the finger-engageable isometric sensing system is formed by one of a protrusion and a recess in the upper profile of the movable keys.

19. A user engageable device for scrolling a document with respect to a display comprising:

a tactile scroll bar having a longitudinal axis, a user engageable force receiver movable along the longitudinal axis, and a controller configured to move the force receiver along the longitudinal axis.

20. The user engageable device of claim 19, further comprising a plurality of pivoting keys, a block for changing the upper profile of the keys and forming the force receiver, a first sensor coupled to the controller and configured to detect a downward force applied to the keys, and a second sensor coupled to the controller and configured to sense a horizontal component of a force applied to the force receiver in the direction of the longitudinal axis.