Systems and Methods for Touch-Based Two-Stage Text Input

• US 20140049477A1
• Filed: 08/14/2012
• Published: 02/20/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 08/14/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Google Technology Holdings LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Motorola Mobility LLC (Lenovo Group Ltd.)
• Inventors: Dai, Hui, Ma, Jeong J., Rasky, Phillip D., Jeong, Chang-Ki, Kim, Chang-Hwan
• Granted Patent: US 9,256,366 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 345/173
• 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

Embodiments relate to systems and methods for touch-based two-stage text input. An electronic device (102), such as a wearable wireless device, can be configured with a two-stage input interface (116) on a display (104). A first stage can include a seek area (120), which displays a subset of letters or other symbols to represent the full range of symbolic elements that are available, in a compressed form. The user can identify an intended target range (128) by touching an area at or around the letter or other symbol of interest. That input triggers the display of a second stage of the interface in a separate selection area (122), in which all letters or other symbols in the target range are expanded and displayed. The user can then touch and lift off the letter or other symbol they wish to choose, for example, to insert in a message or application.

Claims

1. A method of receiving input, comprising:

presenting a set of symbolic elements in a seek area of a display;

receiving a first user input in the seek area specifying a target range of the set of symbolic elements;

based on the first user input, presenting individual symbolic elements from the target range in a selection area of the display;

receiving a second user input in the selection area indicating a selected symbolic element; and

based on the second user input, inserting the selected symbolic element in a data object.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein presenting the set of symbolic elements in the seek area comprises:

presenting at least one of alphabetic information, numeric information, or symbolic information.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein presenting the set of symbolic elements presented in the seek area comprises:

presenting a two-dimensional representation of the set of symbolic elements.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the presenting individual symbolic elements from the target range in a selection area of the display comprises:

presenting all individual symbolic elements from the target range.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein presenting the set of symbolic elements in the seek area comprises:

presenting a one-dimensional representation of a full range of the set of symbolic elements, and

wherein presenting the one-dimensional representation comprises;

displaying a subset of symbolic elements from the full range of the set of symbolic elements.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein displaying the subset comprises:

showing at least regularly-separated symbolic elements in an ordered arrangement of the full range of the set of symbolic elements.

7. The method of claim 5, wherein displaying the subset comprises:

showing at least variably-separated symbolic elements in an ordered arrangement of the full range of the set of symbolic elements.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein inserting the selected symbolic element in the data object comprises transmitting the selected symbolic element to at least one of:

a messaging application or service, a telephony application or service, a search application or service, a word processing application or service, or a web-based application or service.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

automatically generating the selected symbolic element in a training sequence.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

displaying a text editing box on the display to show the selected symbolic element.

11. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

displaying at least one of a done button or a cancel button in the text editing box to control entry of contents of the text editing box to a software application.

12. The method of claim 11, further comprising:

alternating the display of

the selected symbolic element, and

the done button or the cancel button,

in a same area of the display.

13. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

displaying a set of control buttons on the display to control input operations of the set of symbolic elements.

14. The method of claim 13, further comprising:

alternating the display of

the selection area, and

the set of control buttons,

in a same area of the display.

15. The method of claim 1, wherein the presenting individual symbolic elements from the target range in a selection area of the display comprises:

before receiving the second user input in the selection area indicating the selected symbolic element, receiving a third user input in the selection area at an extreme location of the selection area; and

adding a new individual symbolic element to the selection area and removing an old individual symbolic element from the selection area based on the third user input.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the third user input is located at a right extreme of the selection area, and the new individual symbolic element is a character after the last symbolic element in the target range and the old individual symbolic element is the first symbolic element in the target range.

17. The method of claim 15, wherein the third user input is located at a left extreme of the selection area, and the new individual symbolic element is a character before the first symbolic element in the target range and the old individual symbolic element is the last symbolic element in the target range.

18. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

before receiving the second user input in the selection area indicating the selected symbolic element, receiving a third user input in the seek area specifying a second target range of the set of symbolic elements; and

based on the third user input, presenting individual symbolic elements from the second target range in the selection area of the display.

19. A device, comprising:

a display; and

a processor, coupled to the display, the processor being configured to

present a set of symbolic elements in a seek area of the display,

receive a first user input in the seek area specifying a target range of the set of symbolic elements,

based on the first user input, present individual symbolic elements from the target range in a selection area of the display,

receive a second user input in the selection area indicating a selected symbolic element, and

based on the second user input, insert the selected symbolic element in a data object.

20. The device of claim 19, wherein the display is configured to show at least one of alphabetic information, numeric information, or symbolic information in at least one of the seek area or the selection area.

21. The device of claim 19, wherein the display comprises:

a touch-sensitive display, and at least one of receiving the first user input or receiving the second user input comprises;

receiving a touch-based input on the touch-sensitive display.

22. The device of claim 19, further comprising at least one of a done button or a cancel button to control entry of the selected symbolic element in the data object.