TOUCH GESTURES FOR TEXT-ENTRY OPERATIONS

• US 20120216141A1
• Filed: 09/30/2011
• Published: 08/23/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 02/18/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Google Inc. (Alphabet Inc.)
• Inventors: Li, Yang
• Granted Patent: US 8,276,101 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 715/780
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04883 for inputting data by handwriting, e.g. gesture or text
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 30/347 Sampling; Contour coding; Stroke extraction

Abstract

In general, this disclosure describes techniques for providing a user of a computing device with the ability to perform text-entry operations (e.g., using a touch screen) on a computing device. Specifically, the techniques of this disclosure may, in some examples, allow the user to use gestures on a mobile computing device to perform text entry and editing operations. Using a presence-sensitive user interface device (e.g., a touch screen), the user may use gestures to enter text into text-based applications (e.g., short message service (SMS) messages, e-mail message, uniform resource locators (URLs), and the like). Using visually-defined areas on the touch screen, the user may utilize gestures of certain patterns, relative to the defined areas, to indicate text entry and editing operations such as, for example, deleting characters and words, indicating a space or return characters, and the like.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

receiving, using a presence-sensitive display coupled to a computing device, a first user input comprising a first drawing gesture associated with a first area for user input defined at the presence-sensitive display, wherein the first user input specifies one or more characters to be displayed at the presence-sensitive display, and wherein the first drawing gesture includes a drawn representation of the one or more characters;

receiving, using the presence-sensitive display, a second user input comprising a second drawing gesture, wherein the second drawing gesture spans only the first area and a second area for user input defined at the presence-sensitive display, and wherein the second user input specifies a first editing operation associated with the one or more characters;

applying, by the computing device, the first editing operation to the one or more characters in response to receiving the second user input;

receiving, using the presence-sensitive display, a third user input comprising a third drawing gesture, wherein the third drawing gesture spans the first area, the second area, and a third area for user input defined at the presence-sensitive display, and wherein the third user input specifies a second editing operation associated with the one or more characters; and

applying, by the computing device, the second editing operation to the one or more characters in response to receiving the third user input.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the first editing operation is based on a direction of the second drawing gesture that spans the first area and the second area.

3. The method of claim 1,

wherein the second area comprises a subset of the first area, and wherein the second area is defined by a first graphical boundary that partitions the first area.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the second drawing gesture crosses the first graphical boundary.

5. The method of claim 3, wherein the first editing operation is based on a number of times the first graphical boundary is crossed based on the received second user input.

7. The method of claim 3,

wherein the third area comprises a subset of the first area, wherein the third area is defined by a second graphical boundary that partitions the first area, and wherein the third user input comprises crossing the first graphical boundary and the second graphical boundary.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the second editing operation is based on a direction of crossing of the first graphical boundary and the second graphical boundary based on the received third user input.

9. The method of claim 7, wherein the second editing operation is based on a number of times the first graphical boundary and the second graphical boundary is crossed based on the received third user input.

10. The method of claim 7, wherein the second editing operation is based on which of the first graphical boundary and the second graphical boundary is crossed based on the received third user input.

11. The method of claim 1, further comprising determining whether the second user input specifies the one or more characters or specifies the second editing operation.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the second user input specifies the first editing operation when the second drawing gesture comprises a single stroke that spans the first area and the second area, and when a straightness associated with the second drawing gesture is above a straightness threshold.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein the first editing operation comprises at least one of adding a space, adding a return, or performing a deletion of at least one of the one or more characters.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein the presence-sensitive display comprises a touch screen, wherein the touch screen displays the first area and the second area, and wherein the touch screen comprises an upper region and a lower region, the method further comprising:

displaying the first area and the second area in the lower region; and

displaying the one or more characters in the upper region.

15. The method of claim 1, further comprising displaying in the first area a representation of the one or more characters corresponding to the first user input.

16. The method of claim 1, further comprising displaying in the first area a representation of the second editing operation corresponding to the second user input.

17. The method of claim 1, wherein the first user input, the second user input, and the third user input are received at the presence-sensitive display without receiving any input from an on-screen keypad.

18. The method of claim 3, wherein the first graphical boundary comprises at least one horizontal or vertical graphical line partitioning the first area near at least one outer edge associated with the first area.

6. (canceled)

19. A computer-readable storage medium encoded with instructions that, when executed, cause one or more processors of a computing device to perform operations comprising:

receiving, using a presence-sensitive display coupled to the computing device, a first user input comprising a first drawing gesture associated with a first area for user input defined on the presence-sensitive display, wherein the first user input specifies one or more characters to be displayed at the presence-sensitive display, and wherein the first drawing gesture includes a drawn representation of the one or more characters;

receiving, using the presence-sensitive display, second user input comprising a second drawing gesture, wherein the second drawing gesture spans only the first area and a second area for user input defined at the presence-sensitive display, and wherein the second user input specifies a first editing operation associated with the one or more characters;

applying, by the computing device, the first editing operation to the one or more characters in response to receiving the second user input

receiving, using the presence-sensitive display, third user input comprising a third drawing gesture, wherein the third drawing gesture spans the first area, the second area, and a third area for user input defined at the presence-sensitive display, and wherein the third user input specifies a second editing operation associated with the one or more characters; and

applying, by the computing device, the second editing operation to the one or more characters in response to receiving the third user input.

20. A computing device, comprising:

one or more processors;

a presence-sensitive display

wherein the presence-sensitive display is configured to receive first user input comprising a first drawing gesture associated with a first area for user input defined at the presence-sensitive display, wherein the first user input specifies one or more characters to be displayed at the presence-sensitive display, wherein the first drawing gesture includes a drawn representation of the one or more characters,

wherein the presence-sensitive display is further configured to receive second user input comprising a second drawing gesture, wherein the second drawing gesture spans only the first area and a second area for user input defined at the presence-sensitive display, wherein the second user input specifies a first editing operation associated with the one or more characters, and

wherein the presence-sensitive display is further configured to receive third user input comprising a third drawing gesture, wherein the third drawing gesture spans the first area, the second area, and a third area for user input defined at the presence-sensitive display, and wherein the third user input specifies a second editing operation associated with the one or more characters; and

an operations module operable by the one or more processors, wherein the operations module is configured to apply the first editing operation to the one or more characters in response to receiving the second user input, and wherein the operations module is further configured to apply the second editing operation to the one or more characters in response to receiving the third user input.