Methods for Determining a Cursor Position from a Finger Contact with a Touch Screen Display

• US 20080094356A1
• Filed: 09/04/2007
• Published: 04/24/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 09/06/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Inventors: FORSTALL, Scott, CHRISTIE, Greg, ORDING, Bas
• Granted Patent: US 7,843,427 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 345/157
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04186 Touch location disambiguation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04812 Interaction techniques based on cursor appearance or behaviour, e.g. being affected by the presence of displayed objects
• 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 portable device with a touch screen display detects a contact area of a finger with the touch screen display and then determines a first position associated with the contact area. The cursor position of the finger contact is determined, at least in part, based on: the first position, one or more distances between the first position and one or more of the user interface objects; and one or more activation susceptibility numbers, each associated with a respective user interface object in the plurality of user interface objects. If the cursor position falls into the hidden hit region of a virtual push button on the touch screen display, the portable device is activated to perform operations associated with the virtual push button.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method, comprising:

at a portable electronic device with a touch screen display with a plurality of user interface objects,

detecting a contact area of a finger with the touch screen display;

determining a first position that corresponds to the centroid of the contact area;

determining a second position that is offset from the first position based on the shape of the contact area; and

determining a cursor position, at least in part, based on;

the second position,

one or more distances between the second position and one or more of the user interface objects, and

one or more activation susceptibility numbers, each associated with a respective user interface object in the plurality of user interface objects.

2. A computer-implemented method, comprising:

at a portable electronic device with a touch screen display with a plurality of user interface objects,

detecting a contact area of a finger with the touch screen display;

determining a first position associated with the contact area; and

determining a cursor position, at least in part, based on;

the first position,

one or more distances between the first position and one or more of the user interface objects; and

one or more activation susceptibility numbers, each associated with a respective user interface object in the plurality of user interface objects.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the plurality of user interface objects include one or more open icons, one or more close icons, one or more delete icons, one or more exit icons, or soft keyboard key icons.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein, for a stationary contact of a finger with the display, the detected contact area corresponds to the maximum contact area of the finger with the display during a time period corresponding to the stationary contact.

5. The method of claim 2, wherein the first position is the centroid of the contact area.

6. The method of claim 2, wherein the contact area is elliptical with a major axis and the first position is offset from the centroid of the contact area along the major axis.

7. The method of claim 2, wherein a user interface object associated with an activation susceptibility number is easier to activate if the activation susceptibility number has a first sign and is harder to activate if the activation susceptibility number has a second sign opposite to the first sign.

8. The method of claim 2, wherein the distance between the first position and a user interface object is the distance between the first position and a point on the user interface object that is closest to the first position.

9. The method of claim 2, wherein the distance between the first position and a user interface object is the distance between the first position and the center of the user interface object.

10. The method of claim 2, wherein determining the cursor position is based on:

the first position,

the activation susceptibility number associated with a user interface object that is closest to the first position, and

the distance between the first position and the user interface object that is closest to the first position.

11. The method of claim 2, wherein the cursor position is offset from the first position by an amount given by the formula

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the real number n is 1.

13. The method of claim 2, wherein the cursor position is the first position if the first position is within one of the plurality of user interface objects on the display.

14. The method of claim 2, further comprising activating a user interface object at the cursor position.

15. The method of claim 2, wherein the plurality of user interface objects are visible on the display.

16. The method of claim 2, wherein the activation susceptibility numbers are context dependent in an application.

17. The method of claim 2, wherein activation susceptibility numbers associated with soft keyboard keys change as a word is typed with the soft keyboard keys.

18. A graphical user interface on a portable electronic device with a touch screen display, comprising:

a cursor, and

a plurality of user interface objects,

wherein the position of the cursor on the touch screen display is, at least in part, based on;

a first position associated with a contact area of a finger with the touch screen display;

one or more distances between the first position and one or more of the user interface objects; and

one or more activation susceptibility numbers, each associated with a respective user interface object in the plurality of user interface objects.

19. The graphical user interface of claim 18, wherein the first position corresponds to the centroid of the contact area.

20. The graphical user interface of claim 18, wherein the first position corresponds to a position that is offset from the centroid of the contact area based on the shape of the contact area.

21. A portable electronic device, comprising:

a touch screen display with a plurality of user interface objects;

one or more processors;

memory; and

a program, wherein the program is stored in the memory and configured to be executed by the one or more processors, the program including;

instructions for detecting a contact area of a finger with the touch screen display;

instructions for determining a first position associated with the contact area; and

instructions for determining a cursor position, at least in part, based on;

the first position,

one or more distances between the first position and one or more of the user interface objects; and

one or more activation susceptibility numbers, each associated with a respective user interface object in the plurality of user interface objects.

22. A computer-program product, comprising:

a computer readable storage medium and a computer program mechanism embedded therein, the computer program mechanism comprising instructions that, when executed by a portable electronic device with a touch screen display with a plurality of user interface objects, cause the device to;

detect a contact area of a finger with the touch screen display;

determine a first position associated with the contact area; and

determine a cursor position, at least in part, based on;

the first position,

one or more distances between the first position and one or more of the user interface objects; and

one or more activation susceptibility numbers, each associated with a respective user interface object in the plurality of user interface objects.

23. A portable electronic device with a touch screen display with a plurality of user interface objects, comprising:

means for detecting a contact area of a finger with the touch screen display;

means for determining a first position associated with the contact area; and

means for determining a cursor position, at least in part, based on;

the first position,

one or more distances between the first position and one or more of the user interface objects; and

one or more activation susceptibility numbers, each associated with a respective user interface object in the plurality of user interface objects.