SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR COLLABORATIVE GRAPHICAL SEARCHING WITH TANGIBLE QUERY OBJECTS ON A MULTI-TOUCH TABLE
First Claim
1. A system for developing a query comprising:
- a display device for displaying elements which are selectable as query elements for forming a query;
a physical space on the display in which a physical object is positionable;
at least one physical object which is positioned in the physical space as a physical representation of a query and which is recognized as having an identifier stored in memory;
a sensor for detecting a physical manipulation of the physical object in the physical space which represents absorbing a query element into the query;
a query generator for generating a query based on the absorbed query element, the query being associated in memory with the identifier for the recognized object.
1 Assignment
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Accused Products
Abstract
A system and a method are disclosed for developing a query. The system includes a display device for displaying elements, such as images, textures, color palettes, ad textual elements, which are selectable as query elements for forming a query. A physical space is provided on the display in which a physical object can be positioned. At least one physical object is positioned in the physical space, which is recognized by the system as having an identifier stored in memory to which a query can be linked. A sensor is provided for detecting a physical manipulation of the physical object in the physical space which represents absorbing a query element into a query. A query generator generates a query based on the absorbed query element. The query is thus associated in memory with the identifier for the recognized object. In this way, several physical objects can be manipulated on the display device, each one corresponding to a respective, single query.
29 Citations
27 Claims
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1. A system for developing a query comprising:
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a display device for displaying elements which are selectable as query elements for forming a query; a physical space on the display in which a physical object is positionable; at least one physical object which is positioned in the physical space as a physical representation of a query and which is recognized as having an identifier stored in memory; a sensor for detecting a physical manipulation of the physical object in the physical space which represents absorbing a query element into the query; a query generator for generating a query based on the absorbed query element, the query being associated in memory with the identifier for the recognized object. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16)
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17. A method for developing a query comprising:
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providing a physical space in which a physical object is positionable; recognizing a physical object positioned in the physical space which represents a query; displaying a plurality of selectable query elements; detecting a physical manipulation of the physical object in the physical space; interpreting the detected physical manipulation as absorbing one of the selectable query elements into the query; and generating a query based on the absorbed query element, the query being associated in memory with an identifier for the recognized physical object. - View Dependent Claims (18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26)
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27. A system for developing a query comprising:
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a display device for displaying images which are selectable as query elements for forming a query; a physical space on the display in which a physical object is positionable for selection of images as query elements; at least one physical object which is manipulable in the physical space and which is recognized as having an identifier stored in memory, memory which stores instructions for recognizing a manipulation as absorbing one of the images into a query associated with the physical object'"'"'s identifier; and a processor in communication with the memory for implementing the instructions, wherein manipulation of the physical object in the physical space, with respect to a selected one of the displayed images, causes the image to be absorbed into to the query.
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Specification