INPUT DEVICE WITH FORWARD/BACKWARD CONTROL

• US 20100127985A1
• Filed: 01/29/2010
• Published: 05/27/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 09/14/1998
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Holmdahl, Todd E., Hooning, Michael R., Plank, Robert Scott, Kaneko, Steven T., Adan, Manolito E., Lipscomb, Terry M.
• Granted Patent: US 9,069,395 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 345/163
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0312 for tracking the rotation of a spherical or circular member, e.g. optical rotary encoders used in mice or trackballs using a tracking ball or in mouse scroll wheels tracking relative movement in co-operation with a regularly or irregularly patterned surface, e.g. as in optical mice G06F3/0317; constructional details of scroll or thumb-wheels G06F3/0362; optical rotary encoders G01D5/3473
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/03543 Mice or pucks G06F3/03541 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/038 Control and interface arrangements therefor, e.g. drivers or device-embedded control circuitry

Abstract

In a computer system having a display and a keyboard, a computer readable medium includes instructions for invoking a message hook procedure based on a mouse message indicative of a mouse event. Instructions also provide for identifying at least one focus application that has a current keyboard focus and of converting the mouse message into a command for the focus application. The command is then sent to the focus application and the mouse message is prevented from being routed to any other applications. In one embodiment, the commands include the command to page forward or backward through pages of Internet documents. In other embodiments, instead of converting the mouse message into a command, the message hook procedure displays a graphical user interface based on the focus application and the mouse message. The graphical user interface includes one or more commands that the user may select. Based on the selection made by the user, the message hook procedure sends a corresponding command to the focus application.

Claims

1. A computer mouse for use with a computer, the computer running software, the mouse comprising:

a housing; and

a plurality of user depressible surfaces for communicating command signals to the computer;

whereby depression of a first depressible surface generates a first command signal for instructing the software to move backward;

whereby depression of a second depressible surface generates a second command signal for instructing the software to move forward; and

wherein depression of the user depressible surfaces causes the software to respond regardless of the location of a cursor controlled by the mouse.

2. The computer mouse according to claim 1, wherein the software running on the computer is network browser software.

3. The computer mouse according to claim 2, wherein the first command signal causes the browser to page backward to display a previously displayed network page.

4. The computer mouse according to claim 2, wherein the second command signal causes the browser to page forward to display a previously displayed network page.

5. The computer mouse according to claim 1, wherein the software running on the computer is a focus application for paging forward and backward through computer file folders and file folder contents.

6. The computer mouse according to claim 5, wherein the first command signal causes the focus application to page backward through the file folders to display a previously displayed file folders list or files list.

7. The computer mouse according to claim 5, wherein the second command signal causes the focus application to page forward through the file folders to display a previously displayed file folders list or files list.

8. The computer mouse according to claim 1, wherein one or more of the plurality of user depressible surfaces is a touch sensor capable of providing a signal to the computer when a user is touching a particular area of the mouse.