INFORMATION PROCESSING APPARATUS, INFORMATION PROCESSING METHOD, AND PROGRAM

• US 20110231783A1
• Filed: 03/08/2011
• Published: 09/22/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 03/17/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: NOMURA, Eisuke
• Granted Patent: US 8,762,863 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 715/761
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0488 using a touch-screen or digitiser, e.g. input of commands through traced gestures

Abstract

There is provided an information processing apparatus including a detection unit for detecting operation performed with a manipulating object on a display screen to connect to one or more apparatuses, and a determining unit for determining a relative orientation of another apparatus to which the information processing apparatus connects, based on the operation of the manipulating object detected by the detection unit.

Claims

1. An information processing apparatus comprising:

a detection unit for detecting operation performed with a manipulating object on a display screen to connect to one or more apparatuses; and

a determining unit for determining a relative orientation of another apparatus to which the information processing apparatus connects, based on the operation of the manipulating object detected by the detection unit.

2. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the determining unit determines a relative arrangement with respect to the another apparatus for establishing a connection with the another apparatus, based on the operation of the manipulating object detected by the detection unit.

3. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the detection unit detects a trail input to the display screen according to the operation of the manipulating object.

4. The information processing apparatus according to claim 3, further comprising:

an obtaining unit for obtaining trail data representing the trail of operation of the manipulating object detected by the another apparatus and the information processing apparatus.

5. The information processing apparatus according to claim 4, further comprising:

a storage unit for storing the trail data obtained by the obtaining unit.

6. The information processing apparatus according to claim 5,

wherein the determining unit arranges the trail data stored in the storage unit in an order of time, and determines whether the storage unit stores data of the another apparatus to which the information processing apparatus connects.

7. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the detection unit detects an input start region from which input is started and an input end region at which the input is finished, the input being performed with the manipulating object onto the display screen.

8. The information processing apparatus according to claim 7,

wherein the detection unit detects an input start time when input is started and an input end time when the input is finished, the input being performed with the manipulating object onto the display screen.

9. The information processing apparatus according to claim 4,

wherein the obtaining unit obtains trail start data including the input start region and the input start time and the trail end data including the input end region and the input end time, the trail start data and the trail end data being detected by the information processing apparatus and the another apparatus to which the information processing apparatus connects.

10. The information processing apparatus according to claim 9,

wherein the storage unit stores the trail start data and the trail end data obtained by the obtaining unit.

11. The information processing apparatus according to claim 10,

wherein in a case where the number of apparatuses to which the information processing apparatus connects is already known, the determining unit makes a determination as follows:

in the trail start data and the trail end data sorted in an order of time, when the trail end region of the trail end data stored at an order equivalent to the number of apparatuses is determined to be a region representing an end of the trail input performed with the manipulating object, and when the number of pieces of stored data corresponds to the number of apparatuses, the determining unit determines that the trail start data and the trail end data are data representing a relative orientation with respect to the another apparatus to which the information processing apparatus connects.

12. The information processing apparatus according to claim 10,

wherein in a case where the number of apparatuses to which the information processing apparatus connects is unknown, the determining unit makes a determination as follows:

in the trail start data and the trail end data sorted in an order of time, a time difference between an input start time of a predetermined terminal and an input end time of another terminal is calculated, and when a time difference between the input start time of the predetermined terminal and another input end time whose data are located adjacently is determined to be a minimum, and the time difference is equal to or less than a predetermined threshold value, the determining unit determines that the trail start data and the trail end data are data representing a relative orientation with respect to the another apparatus to which the information processing apparatus connects, in a case where the trail end region of the trail end data stored at the last is a region representing an end of the trail input performed with the manipulating object.

13. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the detection unit uses a touch panel of a capacitance method or an infrared method to detect operation performed with the manipulating object on the information processing apparatus.

14. A program for causing a computer to function as an information processing apparatus comprising:

a detection unit for detecting operation performed with a manipulating object on a display screen to connect to one or more apparatuses; and

a determining unit for determining a relative orientation of another apparatus to which the information processing apparatus connects, based on the operation of the manipulating object detected by the detection unit.

15. An information processing method comprising the steps of:

detecting operation performed with a manipulating object on a display screen to connect to one or more apparatuses; and

determining a relative orientation of another apparatus to which the information processing apparatus connects, based on the operation of the manipulating object detected.