THREE DIMENSIONAL ICON STACKS

• US 20100153844A1
• Filed: 12/15/2008
• Published: 06/17/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 12/15/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Verizon Patent and Licensing Incorporated (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Verizon Data Services LLC (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Inventors: HWANG, Sok Y., Stallings, Heath
• Granted Patent: US 8,762,885 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 715/702
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04817 using icons graphical or visual programming using iconic symbols G06F8/34
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0482 Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0483 Interaction with page-structured environments, e.g. book metaphor
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04883 for inputting data by handwriting, e.g. gesture or text

Abstract

A method performed by a user device includes displaying a graphical user interface (GUI) on a touch screen, where the GUI includes a stack having a plurality of items. Each of the plurality of items is at least partially exposed to permit selection by a user, and each of the plurality of items includes content or provides access to content. The method further includes detecting an area of the touch screen that is touched by an instrument, and determining whether the touched area corresponds to an area of the stack or an area of one of the plurality of items. The method also includes determining a gesture corresponding to the touched area, performing an operation, corresponding to the gesture, on the stack or on the one of the plurality of items, and displaying, on the touch screen, content associated with the operation.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

displaying, by a user device, a graphical user interface (GUI) on a touch screen of the user device, where the GUI includes a stack with a plurality of items and each of the plurality of items is at least partially exposed to permit selection by a user, and where each of the plurality of items includes content or provides access to content;

detecting an area of the touch screen that is touched by an instrument;

determining whether the touched area corresponds to an area of the stack or an area of one of the plurality of items;

determining a gesture corresponding to the touched area;

performing an operation corresponding to the gesture on the stack or on the one of the plurality of items; and

displaying, on the touch screen content associated with the operation.

2. The method of claim 1, where each of the plurality of items includes content of a same kind or type.

3. The method of claim 1, where the plurality of items of the stack is one of time-based ordered, alphabetically ordered, or user-based ordered.

4. The method of claim 1, where the content associated with the operation is provided in another stack.

5. The method of claim 1, where the content included in each of the plurality of items includes one of multimedia content, address book content, message log content, or weather content.

6. The method of claim 1, where the gesture corresponds to a single point gesture or a multipoint gesture.

7. The method of claim 1, where the operation corresponding to the gesture includes one of selecting, accessing, manipulating, or dragging.

8. The method of claim 1, where each of the plurality of items includes an icon representative of content.

9. A user device comprising:

a touch display;

a memory to store a plurality of instructions; and

a processor to execute instructions in the memory to;

display a graphical user interface (GUI) on the touch display, where the GUI includes a stack with a plurality of items that are partially exposed to permit selection, and where each of the plurality of items one of includes content or provides access to content,

detect an area of the touch display that is touched by an instrument,

determine a gesture corresponding to the touched area on the touch display,

perform an operation corresponding to the gesture when the touched area includes an area of the stack or an area of the plurality of items, and

display, on the touch display, content in accordance with the operation.

10. The user device of claim 9, where the user device includes at least one of a computational device, a communication device, a navigational device, or an entertainment device.

11. The user device of claim 9, where the displayed content includes one of messages received by the user device, weather, contacts, music, photos, or videos.

12. The user device of claim 9, where each of the plurality of items includes content of a different kind or type.

13. The user device of claim 9, where the plurality of items are ordered according to a first granularity of time, and the content includes another stack in which a plurality of items are ordered according to a second granularity of time, where the first granularity of time is different from the second granularity of time.

14. The user device of claim 9, where the operation includes one of selecting, accessing, manipulating, or dragging one of the plurality of items.

15. The user device of claim 9, where each of the plurality of items includes a photo of a person that provides access to contact information associated with the person.

16. The user device of claim 9, where an order associated with the plurality of items may be configured by a user.

17. A computer-readable medium containing instructions executable by at least one processor, the computer-readable device storing one or more instructions for:

displaying a graphical user interface (GUI) on a touch display, where the GUI includes a stack with a plurality of items that are partially exposed to permit selection, and where each of the plurality of items one of includes content or provides access to content,

detecting an area of the touch display that is touched by an instrument,

determining a gesture corresponding to the touched area on the touch display,

performing an operation corresponding to the gesture when the touched area includes an area of the stack or an area of the plurality of items, and

displaying, on the touch display, content in accordance with the operation.

18. The computer-readable medium of claim 17, where the displayed content includes one of multimedia content, address book content, message log content, or weather content.

19. The computer-readable medium of claim 17, where the instrument includes a finger.

20. The computer-readable medium of claim 17, where the computer-readable medium resides in a wireless communication device.