Touch system and method for interacting with the same

• US 20070205994A1
• Filed: 03/02/2006
• Published: 09/06/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 03/02/2006
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Smart Technologies ULC (Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Smart Technologies ULC (Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd.)
• Inventors: van Ieperen, Taco
• Application Number:
  US11/365,831
• Publication Number:
  US 20070205994A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 345/173
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0486 Drag-and-drop
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0488 using a touch-screen or digitiser, e.g. input of commands through traced gestures

Abstract

A method of manipulating an object displayed on a touch screen of an interactive input system comprises contacting the displayed object to be manipulated with a pointer and moving the pointer on the touch surface thereby to manipulate the object. Pointer up events that occur during the pointer move resulting from inadvertent lost contact between the pointer and the touch surface are disregarded.

Claims

1. In a touch system having a touch surface on which a displayed image is visible, a method of facilitating user interaction with said displayed image during a displayed object manipulation comprising:

detecting inadvertent pointer up conditions during a pointer movement on said touch surface; and

disregarding the detected inadvertent pointer up conditions so that a continuous pointer movement is processed.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein during said detecting, pointer up events followed quickly by pointer down events are detected as inadvertent pointer up conditions.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein during said detecting, pointer up events followed by pointer down events within the displayed object are detected as inadvertent pointer up conditions.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein during said detecting, pointer up events followed by proximal pointer down events are detected as inadvertent pointer up conditions.

5. The method of claim 2 wherein during said detecting, pointer up conditions followed quickly by proximal pointer down conditions are detected as inadvertent pointer up conditions.

6. The method of claim 5 wherein said detecting comprises initiating a timer when a pointer up condition occurs and detecting an inadvertent pointer up condition when a subsequent proximal pointer down condition occurs within a threshold period of time.

7. The method of claim 4 wherein said detecting comprises examining the movement vector of said pointer when a pointer up and subsequent pointer down condition occurs, the pointer up condition being detected as an inadvertent pointer up condition when the subsequent pointer down condition is proximate to the pointer up condition and generally in line with the pointer movement prior to said pointer up condition.

8. A method of manipulating an object visible on a touch screen of an interactive input system comprising:

contacting the visible object to be manipulated with a pointer and moving the pointer on the touch surface thereby to manipulate said object; and

disregarding pointer up events that occur during the pointer move resulting from inadvertent lost contact between said pointer and said touch surface.

9. The method of claim 8 wherein a pointer up event is disregarded when the pointer up event is followed by a pointer down event still within the boundary of said object.

10. The method of claim 9 further comprising, following said contacting, generally centering the object on the point of pointer contact.

11. The method of claim 8 wherein a pointer up event is disregarded when the pointer up event is quickly followed by a pointer down event.

12. The method of claim 8 wherein a pointer up event is disregarded when the pointer up event is followed by a proximal pointer down event.

13. The method of claim 11 wherein a pointer up event is disregarded when the pointer up event is quickly followed by a proximal pointer down event.

14. The method of claim 12 wherein a pointer up event is disregarded when the pointer up event is followed by a proximal pointer down event that is generally in line with the movement of the pointer prior to the pointer up event.

15. A touch system comprising:

a touch surface on which an image is visible, said image including at least one object;

first structure to detect contact of a pointer on said touch surface; and

processing structure communicating with said first structure and processing pointer contact data, said processing structure examining said pointer contact data and disregarding spurious pointer up events resulting from inadvertent loss of pointer contact with said touch surface during object manipulations.

16. A touch system according to claim 15 wherein said processing structure designates pointer up events followed quickly by pointer down events as spurious pointer up events.

17. A touch system according to claim 16 wherein said processing structure designates pointer up events followed quickly by proximal pointer down events as spurious pointer up events.

18. In a touch system responsive to pointer contacts on a touch surface on which an image including at least one displayed object is visible, the improvement comprising:

a spurious pointer up event detector examining pointer contact information generated as a result of pointer interaction with said touch surface, said detector disregarding spurious pointer up events during object manipulations to inhibit the spurious pointer up events from being processed.