DEVICE WITH TOUCH SCREEN FALSE ACTUATION PREVENTION

• US 20140085201A1
• Filed: 09/21/2012
• Published: 03/27/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 09/21/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Malikie Innovations Limited (Key Patent Innovations Limited)
• Original Assignee: Blackberry Limited
• Inventors: CARMEL-VEILLEUX, Tennessee, CHEN, Zhe
• Granted Patent: US 9,001,039 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 345/158
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1694 the I/O peripheral being a single or a set of motion sensors for pointer control or gesture input obtained by sensing movements of the portable computer
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2200/1637 Sensing arrangement for detection of housing movement or orientation, e.g. for controlling scrolling or cursor movement on the display of an handheld computer
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/0381 Multimodal input, i.e. interface arrangements enabling the user to issue commands by simultaneous use of input devices of different nature, e.g. voice plus gesture on digitizer
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/011 Arrangements for interaction with the human body, e.g. for user immersion in virtual reality blind teaching G09B21/00

Abstract

A device and method for preventing false-actuation of a touch screen are provided. When one or more of: (a) an initial proximity event occurs at a proximity sensor of he device, and (b) a reorientation event occurs at an orientation sensor of the device: touch data received via a touch screen of the device is buffered in a memory of the device. Thereafter, a processor of the device: processes the buffered touch data when a further proximity event does not occur within a given time period; and, disables the touch screen when the proximity event occurs within the given time period.

Claims

1. A device comprising:

a processor coupled to a memory, a display including a touch screen for detecting touch events at the display, an orientation sensor, and a proximity sensor, the processor enabled to;

when one or more of;

(a) an initial proximity event occurs at the proximity sensor, and (b) a reorientation event occurs at the orientation sensor;

buffer in the memory touch data received via the touch screen; and

, thereafter;

process the buffered touch data when a further proximity event does not occur within a given time period; and

,

disable the touch screen when the proximity event occurs within the given time period.

2. The device of claim 1, wherein the processor is further enabled to discard the buffered touch data when the proximity event occurs within the given time period.

3. The device of claim 1, wherein the proximity sensor is located adjacent one or more of the touch screen and a speaker.

4. The device of claim 1, wherein the given time period is one or more of:

less than or about equal to a sampling latency period of the proximity sensor;

less than about 100 ms; and

less than about 400 ms.

5. The device of claim 1, wherein when the processor determines that the initial proximity event has occurred at the proximity sensor, the given time period is less than when the processor determines that the reorientation event has been occurred at the orientation sensor.

6. The device of claim 1, wherein the processor is further enabled to turn off the display when the proximity event occurs within the given time period.

7. The device of claim 6, wherein the processor is further enabled to not turn off the display within a sampling latency period of the proximity sensor.

8. The device of claim 1, wherein the orientation sensor comprises one or more of an accelerometer, a gyroscope and a magnetometer.

9. The device of claim 1, wherein the reorientation event is indicative of a change in orientation from one of a face-up orientation and face-down orientation to one of a top-up orientation, a left-up orientation and a right-up orientation.

10. The device of claim 1, wherein the proximity sensor comprises one or more of an infrared proximity sensor, a light-based proximity sensor, a sonar proximity sensor and an acoustic-based proximity sensor.

11. A method comprising:

when one or more of;

(a) an initial proximity event occurs at a proximity sensor of a device, and (b) a reorientation event occurs at an orientation sensor of the device;

buffer, in a memory of the device, touch data received via a touch screen of the device; and

, thereafter;

process, at a processor of the device, the buffered touch data when a further proximity event does not occur within a given time period; and

,

disable the touch screen when the proximity event occurs within the given time period.

12. The method of claim 11, further comprising discarding the buffered touch data when the proximity event occurs within the given time period.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein the given time period is one or more of:

less than or about equal to a sampling latency period of the proximity sensor;

less than about 100 ms; and

less than about 400 ms.

14. The method of claim 11, wherein when the processor determines that the initial proximity event has occurred at the proximity sensor, the given time period is less than when the processor determines that the reorientation event has been occurred at the orientation sensor.

15. The method of claim 11, further comprising turning off the display when the proximity event occurs within the given time period.

16. The method of claim 15, further comprising not turning off the display within a sampling latency period of the proximity sensor.

17. The method of claim 11, wherein the reorientation event is indicative of a change in orientation from one of a face-up orientation and face-down orientation to one of a top-up orientation, a left-up orientation and a right-up orientation.

18. A computer program product, comprising a non-transitory computer usable medium having a computer readable program code adapted to be executed to implement a method comprising:

when one or more of;

(a) an initial proximity event occurs at a proximity sensor of a device, and (b) a reorientation event occurs at an orientation sensor of the device;

buffer, in a memory of the device, touch data received via a touch screen of the device; and

, thereafter;

process, at a processor of the device, the buffered touch data when a further proximity event does not occur within a given time period; and

,

disable the touch screen when the proximity event occurs within the given time period.