DETERMINING GESTURES ON CONTEXT BASED MENUS

• US 20130019205A1
• Filed: 12/29/2011
• Published: 01/17/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 07/14/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Gil, Erez Kikin, Kotler, Matthew, Sachidanandam, Vignesh, Hockman, Andrew
• Granted Patent: US 9,086,794 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 715/834
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0481 based on specific properties of the displayed interaction object or a metaphor-based environment, e.g. interaction with desktop elements like windows or icons, or assisted by a cursor's changing behaviour or appearance
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04812 Interaction techniques based on cursor appearance or behaviour, e.g. being affected by the presence of displayed objects
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0482 Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0488 using a touch-screen or digitiser, e.g. input of commands through traced gestures
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04895 Guidance during keyboard input operation, e.g. prompting
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/453 Help systems

Abstract

Context based menus are employed for content management through touch or gesture actions, keyboard entries, mouse or pen actions, and similar input. Different actions and combinations of actions enable users to activate sub-menus, execute commands, or collapse context based menus. Gestures associated with the actions are determined through action analysis. The action analysis includes tap action hit target region analysis and swipe action direction, angle, and/or length analysis.

Claims

1. A method executed at least in part in a computing device for determining gestures on context based menus, the method comprising:

in response to detecting one of a;

a tap action, a swipe action, a mouse input, a pen input, and a keyboard input, presenting a context based menu in relation to a displayed content on a user interface;

detecting a gesture associated with the context based menu; and

determining an action to be performed in association with the context based menu by interpreting the detected gesture based on at least one from a set of;

a direction, an angle, a length, and a location of the gesture.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

in response to detecting the tap action in a primary hit target region centered around a command item of the context based menu, interpreting the gesture as an activation event for the command.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the primary hit target region has one of:

a substantially circular, a substantially rectangular, a substantially oval, and an irregular shape.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein at least one of a size and a shape of the primary hit target region is determined according to a user interface configuration setting.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the at least one of a size and a shape of the primary hit target region is adjusted based on an automatic learning process from a size of a user'"'"'s finger.

6. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

in response to detecting the tap action in a secondary hit target region centered around a command of the context based menu and outside the primary hit target region;

evaluating a tap action history associated with the secondary hit target region; and

interpreting the gesture based on the tap action history.

7. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

in response to detecting the tap action in a secondary hit target region centered around a command of the context based menu and outside the primary hit target region, ignoring the detected tap action.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

applying a weighting value to interpret the gesture associated with the tap action between a command and another command of the context based menu, wherein the weighting value is determined by evaluating a tap action history.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising:

expanding the size of a primary hit target region associated with one of the command and the other command according to the weighting value.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the context based menu has a radial shape and is divided into three concentric gesture interpretation zones comprising a center zone around a center of the context based menu, a command zone around the center zone, a sub-menu zone around the command zone, a padding area, and a cancel region.

11. A computing device for determining gestures on context based menus, the computing device comprising:

a input device configured to detect at least one of;

a swipe action and a tap action;

a memory;

a processor coupled to the memory, the processor executing an application and causing a user interface associated with the application to be displayed on a screen, wherein the processor is configured to;

in response to detecting one of a;

a tap action, a swipe action, a mouse input, a pen input, and a keyboard input, present a context based menu in relation to a displayed content on the user interface;

detect a swipe action associated with the context based menu; and

determine an action to be performed in association with the context based menu by interpreting the detected swipe action based on at least one from a set of;

a direction, an angle, a length, and a location of the swipe action relative to one or more gesture zones defined on the context based menu.

12. The computing device of claim 11, wherein the processor is further configured to:

compare a length of the swipe action to a set of minimum activation distances from a predefined starting point on the context based menu;

determine the action based on a matching minimum activation distance; and

if the swipe action is from outside towards a center of the context based menu and then back from the center towards the outside, not execute a command associated with the swipe action.

13. The computing device of claim 12, wherein the processor is further configured to:

determine the action based on the angle of the swipe action relative to a predefined origin axis, wherein items on the context based menu are positioned in sections separated by substantially equal angle increments.

14. The computing device of claim 12, wherein the matching minimum activation distance corresponds to a gesture associated with one of activating a command and activating a sub-menu launcher.

15. The computing device of claim 12, wherein the processor is further configured to:

in response to detecting the tap action in a substantially oval shaped primary hit target region centered around a command item of the context based menu, interpreting the gesture as an activation event for the command.

16. The computing device of claim 11, wherein the processor is further configured to:

ignore the swipe action if the swipe action one of;

originates from and ends in a dead zone around a center of the context based menu including the center of the context based menu.

17. The computing device of claim 11, wherein the processor is further configured to:

ignore the swipe action if the swipe action crosses from a section associated with a command to another section associated with another command in a same level within the context based menu.

18. A computer-readable memory device with instructions stored thereon for determining gestures on context based menus, the instructions comprising:

in response to detecting one of a;

a tap action, a swipe action, a mouse input, and a keyboard input, presenting a context based menu in relation to a displayed content on a user interface;

detecting a gesture associated with the context based menu; and

determining an action to be performed in association with the context based menu by interpreting the detected gesture being one a tap action on a predefined zone on the context based menu and a swipe action across one or more predefined zones on the context based menu based on at least one from a set of;

a direction, an angle, a length, and a location of the swipe action.

19. The computer-readable memory device of claim 18, wherein the instructions further comprise:

detecting the tap action in a primary hit target region of one of;

a command, a sub-menu launcher, and an indicator to control expand and collapse actions on the context based menu.

20. The computer-readable memory device of claim 19, wherein a primary target region for detecting the tap action and the swipe action has a shape that is distinct from an outline of an underlying visible graphics, and wherein the primary target region includes at least one from a set of:

an oval shape, a square shape, a trapezoid shape, a rectangular shape, a triangular shape, and an irregular shape.