APPARATUS, SYSTEM, AND METHOD FOR TOUCH INPUT

• US 20130249813A1
• Filed: 03/26/2012
• Published: 09/26/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 03/26/2012
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Lenovo Singapore Pte Limited (Lenovo Group Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Lenovo Singapore Pte Limited (Lenovo Group Ltd.)
• Inventors: Locker, Howard, Cromer, Daryl, Perrin, Steven Richard
• Application Number:
  US13/430,051
• Publication Number:
  US 20130249813A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 345/173
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04812 Interaction techniques based on cursor appearance or behaviour, e.g. being affected by the presence of displayed objects

Abstract

An apparatus, system, and method are disclosed for touch input. An apparatus for touch input includes a sensor module and a display module. The sensor module determines a site of an input object in relation to a touch-sensitive input surface when the input object is within a sensing range of the touch-sensitive input surface. The display module displays a cursor within a touch-optimized graphical user interface (GUI). The cursor is displayed on a display at a display location corresponding to the site of the input object. The touch-sensitive input surface is separate from the display.

Claims

1. An apparatus comprising:

a storage device storing machine-readable code;

a processor executing the machine-readable code, the machine-readable code comprising;

a sensor module determining a site of an input object in relation to a touch-sensitive input surface when the input object is within a sensing range of the touch-sensitive input surface;

a display module displaying a cursor within a touch-optimized graphical user interface (GUI), the cursor being displayed on a display at a display location corresponding to the site of the input object, the touch-sensitive input surface being separate from the display.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the site determined by the sensor module comprises a lateral location and a perpendicular state of the input object in relation to the touch-sensitive input surface and wherein the display location corresponds to the lateral location, the perpendicular state comprising one of a plurality of possible states comprising a first state and a second state.

3. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein the cursor is displayed at the display location in response to the input object being in the first state, the apparatus further comprising an event generator module generating a touch input event at the display location in response to the input device being in the second state.

4. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein the perpendicular state is based on one or more of an amount of force between the input object and the touch-sensitive input surface, and a distance between the input object and the touch-sensitive input surface.

5. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein the first state corresponds to the sensor module determining that the input object is in a non-contact sensing range of the touch-sensitive input surface and the second state corresponds to the sensor module determining that the input object is in contact with the touch-sensitive input surface.

6. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the touch-sensitive input surface comprises a touchpad and the input object comprises a finger.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the cursor comprises a substantially round shape approximating the size of a finger expected by the touch-optimized GUI.

8. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the cursor comprises a pin-point indicator.

9. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein a portion of the cursor is at least semi-transparent.

10. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the sensor module determines the site of a first input object comprising the input object and one or more additional input objects in relation to the touch-sensitive input surface and wherein the display module displays a first cursor comprising the cursor and one or more additional cursors corresponding to the one or more additional input objects.

11. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the cursor is displayed in a touch-optimized operating system, the touch-optimized operating system comprising the touch-optimized GUI.

12. An apparatus comprising:

a storage device storing machine-readable code;

a processor executing the machine-readable code, the machine-readable code comprising;

a sensor module determining a lateral location and a perpendicular state of an input object in relation to a touch-sensitive input surface, the perpendicular state comprising one of a first state and a second state;

a display module displaying a cursor within a touch-optimized graphical user interface (GUI) in response to a determination that the input object is in the first state, the cursor displayed at a display location on a display separate from the touch-sensitive input surface, the display location on the display corresponding to the lateral location of the input object; and

an event generator module generating a touch input event at the display location in response to the input device being in the second state.

13. A method comprising:

determining a site of an input object in relation to a touch-sensitive input surface when the input object is within a sensing range of the touch-sensitive input surface; and

displaying a cursor within a touch-optimized graphical user interface (GUI), the cursor displayed on a display at a display location corresponding to the site of the input object, the touch-sensitive input surface separate from the display.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the determined site comprises a lateral location and a perpendicular state of the input object in relation to the touch-sensitive input surface and wherein the display location corresponds to the lateral location, the perpendicular state comprising one of a plurality of possible states comprising a first state and a second state.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the cursor is displayed at the display location in response to the input object being in a first state, the method further comprising generating a touch input event at the display location in response to the input device being in the second state.

16. The method of claim 14, wherein the perpendicular state is based on one or more of an amount of force between the input object and the touch-sensitive input surface, and a distance between the input object and the touch-sensitive input surface.

17. The method of claim 13, wherein the touch-sensitive input surface comprises a touchpad and the display comprises a display in a clamshell type device.

19. The computer program product of claim 13, wherein the determined site comprises a lateral location and a perpendicular state of the input object in relation to the touch-sensitive input surface and wherein the display location corresponds to the lateral location, the perpendicular state comprising one of a plurality of possible states comprising a first state and a second state.

20. The computer program product of claim 14, wherein the cursor is displayed at the display location in response to the input object being in a first state, the method further comprising generating a touch input event at the display location in response to the input device being in the second state.

18. A computer program product comprising a storage device storing machine readable code executed by a processor to perform the operations of:

determining a site of an input object in relation to a touch-sensitive input surface when the input object is within a sensing range of the touch-sensitive input surface;

displaying a cursor within a touch-optimized graphical user interface (GUI), the cursor displayed on a display at a display location corresponding to the site of the input object, the touch-sensitive input surface separate from the display.