Creation and manipulation of canvases based on ink strokes

• US 20070180397A1
• Filed: 01/31/2006
• Published: 08/02/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 01/31/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Hoyer, Crystal, Cooperstein, Howard, Breinberg, Steven, Kim, Guem, Owen, Clifton
• Granted Patent: US 7,774,722 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 715/780
• 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

A canvas in an inking application is created and manipulated based on ink strokes. An ink stroke outside a presented canvas, even outside a user interface of the inking application, is recorded and the presented canvas enlarged to cover the recorded ink stroke. If the ink stroke begins on a command area such as a canvas size control icon, the command associated with the area is executed. If the ink stroke begins in a typed text area, lines are frozen and separated responsive to the first stroke. A new canvas is presented between the separated lines. A size of the new canvas is adjusted based on ink entry or a size of the first ink stroke.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method to be executed at least in part in an inking application for creating and manipulating a canvas, comprising:

receiving an inking mode indication;

determining a canvas area anchor point; and

if the canvas area anchor point is in an acceptable location, inserting a canvas area in the application user interface.

2. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the acceptable location includes at least one from a set of a typed text area, a presented canvas area, and an area outside the presented canvas area.

3. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, the canvas area anchor point is determined based on an ink stroke.

4. The computer-implemented method of claim 3, further comprising adjusting a size of the inserted canvas area based on one of a size of the ink stroke and an input detected by a canvas control icon.

5. The computer-implemented method of claim 3, further comprising determining a separation location and a separation distance between typed text lines based on an initial point and a length of the ink stroke, if the canvas area anchor point is in the typed text area.

6. The computer-implemented method of claim 3, wherein the ink stroke is also the inking mode indication.

7. The computer-implemented method of claim 6, further comprising determining a command to be executed if the ink stroke is initiated on a command area.

8. The computer-implemented method of claim 7, wherein the command area includes a canvas size control icon.

9. The computer-implemented method of claim 8, further comprising modifying a size of the canvas based on the length and a direction of the ink stroke initiated on the canvas size control icon.

10. The computer-implemented method of claim 7, wherein the command area further includes a soft button associated with the inking application user interface.

11. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the inking application includes at least one of from a set of:

a word processing application, a presentation application, a spreadsheet application, a calendar application, a graphics application, a diagram application, and an electronic mail application.

12. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the inking mode indication includes at least one from a set of:

an inking pen stroke, a touch screen activation, activation a soft button, activation of a hard button, a mouse entry, and a keyboard entry.

13. A computer-readable medium having stored thereon instructions that are executable at least in part in a computing device for creating and manipulating a canvas based on an ink stroke, the instructions comprising:

detecting an ink stroke;

recording the ink stroke and growing a presented canvas to cover the ink stroke, when the ink stroke is outside the presented canvas and not in a command area;

determining a command to be executed and executing the command, when the ink stroke is in the command area; and

inserting a new canvas based on a location and size of the ink stroke, when the ink stroke is in a typed text area.

14. The computer-readable medium of claim 13, wherein inserting the new canvas includes preserving at least one text attribute from a set of:

line lengths, font size and type, line spacing, and text flow;

separating the lines;

creating the new canvas between the separated lines; and

adjusting a size of the new canvas based on an ink entry in the new canvas.

15. The computer-readable medium of claim 14, wherein growing the presented canvas includes enlarging a size of at least one of the presented canvas and a user interface containing the presented canvas in a direction and by an amount indicated by the recorded ink stroke.

16. The computer-readable medium of claim 14, wherein the command area includes a canvas size control icon configured to adjust a size of the presented canvas in a direction and by an amount indicated by the ink stroke starting on the canvas size control icon.

17. A computer-implemented method to be executed at least in part in a computing device for manipulating a presented canvas in an inking application, comprising:

detecting a stroke outside the presented canvas while in an inking mode;

recording the stroke including a portion of the stroke that is not continued within the presented canvas; and

growing the presented canvas such that the recorded stroke is covered by the presented canvas.

18. The computer-implemented method of claim 17, further comprising growing a user interface of the inking application along with the presented canvas if the recorded stroke is outside the user interface area.

19. The computer-implemented method of claim 17, wherein the detected stroke is one of wholly and partially outside the presented canvas.

20. The computer-implemented method of claim 17, wherein the presented canvas is grown in one of a positive and a negative direction.