MULTI-TOUCH INPUT CONTROL SYSTEM

• US 20120212420A1
• Filed: 02/23/2010
• Published: 08/23/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 10/12/2009
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Laonex Co., Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Laonex Co., Ltd.
• Inventors: Shin, Keun-Ho
• Application Number:
  US12/989,483
• Publication Number:
  US 20120212420A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 345/173
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04808 Several contacts: gestures triggering a specific function, e.g. scrolling, zooming, right-click, when the user establishes several contacts with the surface simultaneously; e.g. using several fingers or a combination of fingers and pen
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04883 for inputting data by handwriting, e.g. gesture or text
• 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 multi-touch input control system includes: a touch input unit having a multi-touch-type touch input surface which recognizes one or more touch points at the same time, generating the coordinates of one or more touch points inputted through the touch input surface, and transmitting touch information containing the coordinate information; and a computing unit receiving the touch information from the touch input unit, setting one of preset control modes according to the number of touch points, selecting a control command among control commands contained in the set control mode in correspondence to a variation in the number of touch points and a coordinate variation, and generating a control signal corresponding to the control command to performing internal control processing.

Claims

1. A multi-touch input control system comprising:

a touch input unit having a multi-touch-type touch input surface which recognizes one or more touch points at the same time, generating the coordinates of one or more touch points inputted through the touch input surface, and transmitting touch information containing the coordinate information; and

a computing unit receiving the touch information from the touch input unit, setting one of preset control modes according to the number of touch points, selecting a control command among control commands contained in the set control mode in correspondence to a variation in the number of touch points and a coordinate variation, and generating a control signal corresponding to the control command to performing internal control processing.

2. The multi-touch input control system of claim 1, wherein the computing unit comprises:

a transmission interface forming an information transmission path between the touch input unit and the computing unit according to any one standard of wired transmission, wireless transmission, and data input and output through an internal line;

a general agent having information on the control modes containing one or more control commands, receiving the touch information of the touch input unit through the transmission interface, determining the number of touch points from the touch information, selecting one of the control modes according to the number of touch points, and generating a control signal corresponding to a control command contained in the selected control mode according to the variation in the number of touch points and the coordinate variation; and

a control module receiving the control signal from the general agent, performing internal control processing, and displaying the processing result on a screen.

3. The multi-touch input control system of claim 2, wherein the control mode comprises a cursor movement control mode containing control commands related to a cursor movement and a mouse left/right click,

when the number of touch points is a predetermined number (hereinafter, referred to a first number), the general agent sets the control mode to the cursor movement control mode, and

when a touch point additionally occurs in the left or right side from the touch points in the cursor movement control mode, the general agent recognizes the touch as a control command of the mouse left or right click, and generates a corresponding control signal.

4. The multi-touch input control system of claim 3, wherein when a touch point additionally occurs in a state in which an object on the screen is selected, the general agent generates a control signal corresponding to a control command for copying, cutting, or pasting the selected object according to the movement direction of the touch point.

5. The multi-touch input control system of claim 2, wherein the control mode comprises a screen control mode containing control commands related to upward/downward or left/right screen scroll and page transition,

when the number of touch points is a predetermined number (hereinafter, referred to as a second number), the general agent sets the control mode to a screen control mode, detects a state in which the touch state of the touch points is maintained in a limited range for a predetermined time in the screen control mode (hereafter, referred to as a long-press touch), and selects any one of the screen scroll and the page transition depending on when the long-press touch occurs or not, and

when the touch points are moved in the upward/downward or left/right direction, the general agent recognizes the movement as a control command for the selected one of the screen scroll and the page transition, and generates a corresponding control signal.

6. The multi-touch input control system of claim 2, wherein the control mode comprises a character input control mode containing commands related to character input,

when the number of touch points is a predetermined number (hereafter, referred to as a fourth number), the general agent sets the control mode to a character input control mode, selects the language type of input characters in correspondence to an upward/downward or left/right movement of the touch points in the character input control mode, recognizes inputs of individual characters according to predefined types of touch operations and a character table, and generates a corresponding control signal, and

when an additional touch corresponding to the fourth number occurs in the character input control mode, the control mode returns to the initial state in which an arbitrary control mode is selected.

7. The multi-touch input control system of claim 2, wherein the control mode comprises a basic program control mode to execute basic programs provided by an operating system, and

when the number of touch points is a predetermined number (hereinafter, referred to as a third number), the general agent sets the control mode to the basic program control mode, and generates a control signal corresponding to a control command for executing a predefined basic program in correspondence to a movement direction of the touch in the basic program control mode.

8. The multi-touch input control system of claim 7, wherein when a long-press touch corresponding to the third number is detected in the basic program control mode, the general agent displays a list of currently-executing basic programs on the screen, moves a basic program to be selected from the basic program list in correspondence to a movement of the touch points, and

when the touch is separated, the currently-selected basic program is executed.

9. The multi-touch input control system of claim 2, wherein the control mode comprises a window control mode containing commands for controlling a window displaying a screen on which a program is executed,

when the number of touch points is a predetermined number, the general agent sets the control mode to the window control mode,

when a touch corresponding to the third number is inputted, the general agent displays a minimize button, a maximize button, and a close button which are matched with the touch corresponding to the third number and are the system menu of the window, and

when one button in the system menu of the window is selected by an additional touch input, the general agent generates a control signal corresponding to the selected button.

10. The multi-touch input control system of claim 9, wherein when the touch corresponding to the third number is moved downward in a state in which the system menu of the window is displayed, the general agent moves the window to a taskbar.

11. The multi-touch input control system of claim 9, wherein when a touch corresponding to the second number is inputted, the general agent sets the control mode to a window size control mode for controlling the size of the window, and

when an additional touch corresponding to the first number is inputted, the general agent generates a control signal to control the size of the window.

12. The multi-touch input control system of claim 11, wherein when a touch corresponding to the second number additionally occurs in the window size control mode, the general agent sets the control mode to a window movement control mode for moving the position of the window, and

as the position of the additional touch input corresponding to the second number is moved, the general agent generates a control signal to move the position of the window.

13. The multi-touch input control system of claim 12, wherein when only one of the touch points for setting the window control mode is maintained and the other touch points are released, the general agent recognizes the maintained touch point as a touch input which additionally occurs.

14. The multi-touch input control system of claim 2, wherein the control modes comprise a character input control mode for inputting a character through a character input interface displayed on the touch input unit, and

the general agent generates a control signal to move a mouse cursor from a position at which the touch point leaves a character input permission range within a character recognition region.

15. The multi-touch input control system of claim 14, wherein when the touch input is released within the character recognition region, the general agent generates a control signal to output a character matched with the character recognition region.

16. The multi-touch input control system of claim 15, wherein the character recognition region comprises an input range which is previously set in such a manner that when one of characters displayed on the character input interface is touched, the character selected by the touch input is recognized.

17. The multi-touch input control system of claim 16, wherein the character input permission range comprises a range which is previously set in such a manner that when the touch performed in the character recognition region is moved, the movement is recognized as a normal character input.

18. The multi-touch input control system of claim 14, wherein when a touch corresponding to the second number is inputted, the general agent sets the control mode to a window size control mode for controlling the size of the window, and

as a touch corresponding to the first number is additionally inputted, the general agent generates a control signal to control the size of the window.

19. The multi-touch input control system of claim 18, wherein when a touch corresponding to the second number is additionally inputted in the window size control mode, the general agent sets the control mode to a window movement control mode for moving the position of the window, and

as the position of the touch corresponding to the second number is moved, the general agent generates a control signal to move the position of the window.

20. The multi-touch input control system of claim 14, wherein when a touch corresponding to the third number is inputted in the character input control mode, the general agent displays a minimize button, a maximize button, and a close button which are matched with the touch corresponding to the third number and are the system menu of the window, and

when one button in the system menu of the window is selected by an additional touch input, the general agent generates a control signal corresponding to the selected button.

21. The multi-touch input control system of claim 20, wherein when only one of the touch points for setting the window control mode is maintained and the other touch points are released, the general agent recognizes the maintained touch point as a touch input which additionally occurs.

22. The multi-touch input control system of claim 20, wherein when the touch corresponding to the third number is moved downward in a state in which the system menu of the window is displayed, the general agent moves the window to a taskbar.

23. The multi-touch input control system of claim 8, wherein the computing unit comprises:

one or more application programs individually added and having one or more control commands which are defined thereby; and

one or more special agents individually added in correspondence to the application programs, having information on predefined touch operations in correspondence to the control commands of the application programs, receiving the touch information of the touch input unit through the transmission interface when driven by the general agent, analyzing the received touch information, generating a control signal corresponding to the control command of the application program, and providing the generated control signal to the control module,

when the touch point is moved in a specific direction in the basic program control mode, the general agent displays an application program installation list including the application programs provided in the computing unit, moves an application program to be selected from the application program installation list in correspondence to the movement of the touch point, and

when the touch point is separated, the general agent executes the selected application program, sets the control mode to the application program control mode, and drives a special agent corresponding to the selected application program among the special agents.

24. The multi-touch input control system of claim 23, wherein when the touch point is moved downward in the basic program control mode, the general agent displays a desktop provided by an operating system of the computing unit.