Soft Control User Interface with Touchpad Input Device

• US 20130093689A1
• Filed: 10/17/2011
• Published: 04/18/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 10/17/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Meta Platforms, Inc. (f/k/a Facebook, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Meta Platforms, Inc. (f/k/a Facebook, Inc.)
• Inventors: Papakipos, Matthew Nicholas, Cahill, Matthew
• Granted Patent: US 8,830,191 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 345/173
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1626 with a single-body enclosure integrating a flat display, e.g. Personal Digital Assistants [PDAs]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/169 the I/O peripheral being an integrated pointing device, e.g. trackball in the palm rest area, mini-joystick integrated between keyboard keys, touch pads or touch stripes G06F1/1643 takes precedence; constructional details of pointing devices G06F3/033
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/03547 Touch pads, in which fingers can move on a surface
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04847 Interaction techniques to control parameter settings, e.g. interaction with sliders or dials
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04883 for inputting data by handwriting, e.g. gesture or text
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/62 Control of parameters via user interfaces

Abstract

In one embodiment, a user of a mobile device adjusts a controllable parameter of an application hosted by the mobile device by using touch inputs to the mobile device'"'"'s side-mounted touchpad.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

displaying a graphical parameter control element in a graphical user interface indicating a range and a position value of a controllable parameter;

in response to a touch event on a touchpad;

if the touch event is a scrolling event, changing the position value based on direction of the scrolling event; and

if the touch event is a tap event, launching a pre-determined action associated with the tap event.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein if the touch event is a scrolling event, changing the position value is further based on start and end locations of the scrolling event.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the pre-determined action comprises adjusting the controllable parameter to a parameter value corresponding to the closest point of the tap event.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the pre-determined action comprises toggling display of the graphical parameter control element on and off

5. An apparatus, comprising:

a memory;

one or more processors;

a display;

a side-mounted touchpad;

a program comprising computer-readable instructions operative, when executed, to cause the one or more processors to;

display a graphical parameter control element in a graphical user interface indicating a range and a position value of a controllable parameter;

in response to a touch event on a touchpad;

if the touch event is a scrolling event, change the position value based on direction of the scrolling event; and

if the touch event is a tap event, launch a pre-determined action associated with the tap event.

6. The apparatus of claim 5, wherein if the touch event is a scrolling event, to change the position value is further based on start and end positions of the scrolling event.

7. The apparatus of claim 5, wherein to display the graphical parameter control element in the graphical user interface indicating a range and a position value of the controllable parameter, is further based on orientation of the apparatus.

8. The apparatus of claim 5 wherein the pre-determined action comprises adjusting the controllable parameter to a parameter value corresponding to the closest point of the tap event.

9. The apparatus of claim 5 wherein the pre-determined action comprises toggling display of the graphical parameter control element on and off.

10. One or more computer readable tangible storage media embodying software operable when executed by a computing device to:

display a graphical parameter control element in a graphical user interface indicating a range and a position value of a controllable parameter;

in response to a touch event on a touchpad;

if the touch event is a scrolling event, change the position value based on direction of the scrolling event; and

if the touch event is a tap event, launch a pre-determined action associated with the tap event.

11. The media of claim 10, wherein if the touch event is a scrolling event, to change the position value is further based on start and end locations of the scrolling event.

12. The media of claim 10, wherein to display the graphic parameter control element in the graphical user interface indicating a range and a position value of a controllable parameter, is further based on orientation of the computing device.

13. The media of claim 10, wherein the pre-determined action comprises adjusting the controllable parameter to a parameter value corresponding to the closest point of the tap event.

14. The media of claim 10, wherein the pre-determined action comprises toggling display of the graphical parameter control element on and off.