USER INTERFACE DEVICE WITH TOUCH PAD ENABLING ORIGINAL IMAGE TO BE DISPLAYED IN REDUCTION WITHIN TOUCH-INPUT SCREEN, AND INPUT-ACTION PROCESSING METHOD AND PROGRAM

• US 20140160073A1
• Filed: 06/29/2012
• Published: 06/12/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 07/29/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: KDDI Corporation
• Original Assignee: KDDI Corporation
• Inventors: Matsuki, Tomoaki
• Granted Patent: US 9,244,544 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 345/174
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04105 Pressure sensors for measuring the pressure or force exerted on the touch surface without providing the touch position
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/016 Input arrangements with force or tactile feedback as computer generated output to the user
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/03547 Touch pads, in which fingers can move on a surface
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0485 Scrolling or panning
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04883 for inputting data by handwriting, e.g. gesture or text
• 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

A process is disclosed for displaying an image on a display screen and recognizing a user'"'"'s input by the user'"'"'s finger touch on a touch screen, the process including: a first step of displaying an original image; a second step of forming a screen pad, such that a reference image, which is a reduced duplicate of the original image, is displayed on the screen pad within the display screen, such that the reference image is overlaid with the original image, in a translucent mode that renders the original image visible through the reference image, or an opaque mode where the original image is not visible. The reference image is obtained by reducing the original image with or without image simplification. A third step, in response to the user touching the screen pad, detects finger position on the screen pad, and recognizes the user'"'"'s input based on the detected finger position.

Claims

1. A user interface device operable to perform a display function of displaying an image on a display screen, and a touch panel function of outputting successive locations of the user'"'"'s finger touch point on a touch screen over time, comprising:

a screen-pad controller configured to display a reference image on the display screen to form a screen pad, such that the reference image is a reduced duplicate of an original image being displayed on the display screen;

a touch determining unit configured to determine whether or not the finger has been touched to the screen pad;

a pointer displaying unit configured to be operable in response to the touch determining unit determining that the finger has been touched to the screen pad, to display a pointer on the original image being displayed on the display screen, to indicate a location on the display screen, which corresponds to a position at which the user has touched the finger to the screen pad; and

an operation controller configured to invoke an operation associated with the location that the pointer is indicating.

2. The user interface device according to claim 1, wherein the operation controller is configured to invoke the same operation that will occur in the user interface device if the user touches the finger to the display screen at a same position as an initial position that the pointer took, and then swipes the finger across the original image being displayed on the display screen, along a same path that the pointer took after the initial position.

3. The user interface device according to claim 1, wherein the screen pad is displayed on the display screen at a position that allows the user who is holding the mobile information device using the user'"'"'s one hand in an attempt to manipulate the mobile information device using the one hand of the user, to reach any location on the screen pad using a finger of the one hand of the user.

4. The user interface device according to claim 1, wherein the touch determining unit is configured to be operable in response to the user touching the finger to the screen pad, to determine whether or not a stationary-touch duration during which the finger touch point is held substantially stationarily on the screen pad is equal to or longer than a predetermined duration, and

the operation controller is configured to operable in response to the touch determining unit determining that the stationary-touch duration is equal to or longer than the predetermined duration, to activate a touch focus mode for monitoring successive locations of the finger touch point on the screen pad, with the images held stationarily on the display screen.

5. The user interface device according to claim 4, wherein the operation controller is configured to be operable in response to an event occurring in which, during the touch focus mode, the pointer indicates a region of an object being displayed, which object is user-selectable and is included in the original image, to determine that the user has performed a focus motion to select the object, and then invoke an operation associated with the object.

6. The user interface device according to claim 4, further comprising:

a pressing-force sensor detecting a pressing force with which the finger presses the touch panel; and

a pressing-force determining unit configured to determine whether or not the detected pressing-force is equal to or larger than a predetermined threshold,

wherein the operation controller is configured to be operable in response to an event occurring in which, during the touch focus mode, the pointer indicates a region of an object being displayed, which object is user-selectable and is included in the original image, and in which the detected pressing-force is equal to or larger than the predetermined threshold, to determine that the user has performed a click motion to invoke an function pre-assigned to the object, and then invoke an operation associated with the object.

7. The user interface device according to claim 6, further comprising:

a haptic feedback arrangement configured to impart haptic feedback to the user'"'"'s finger in touch with the touch panel; and

a haptic feedback controller configured to control the haptic feedback arrangement to impart the haptic feedback to the finger via the touch panel.

8. The user interface device according to claim 1, further comprising:

a pressing-force sensor detecting a pressing force with which the finger presses the touch panel; and

a pressing-force determining unit configured to determine whether or not the detected pressing-force is equal to or larger than a predetermined threshold,

wherein the operation controller is configured to be operable in response to the touch determining unit determining that, before a predetermined length of time elapses after the finger starts being touched to the screen pad, the finger starts moving in touch with the screen pad, and then the finger stops moving, to determine that the user has performed a drag click motion in the form of a succession of a first motion for moving the images in coordination with a movement of the finger, and a second motion for further moving the images at a rate variable as a function of a magnitude of the pressing force after the drag motion ends, and then invoke an operation associated with the drag click motion.

9. The user interface device according to claim 1, wherein the operation controller is configured to be operable in response to the user touching the finger to the display screen at a location away from a region of the screen pad being displayed, to invoke a same operation that would be invoked in the mobile information device if the user touched the finger to the display screen at a same location as the away location in an absence of the screen pad on the display screen.

10. A method of processing a user'"'"'s inputs on a user interface device operable to perform a display function of displaying an image on a display screen, and a touch panel function of outputting successive locations of the user'"'"'s finger touch point on a touch screen over time, the method comprising:

a first step of displaying a reference image on the display screen to form a screen pad, such that the reference image is a reduced duplicate of an original image being displayed on the display screen;

a second step of determining whether or not the finger has been touched to the screen pad;

a third step, operable in response to a determination being made that that the finger has been touched to the screen pad, of displaying a pointer on the original image being displayed on the display screen, to indicate a location on the display screen, which corresponds to a position at which the user has touched the finger to the screen pad; and

a fourth step of invoking an operation associated with the location that the pointer is indicating.

12. A program to be executed by a computer to perform the method according to claim 10.

11. A process of processing a user'"'"'s inputs on a user interface device configured to display an image on a display screen and recognize a user'"'"'s input by the user'"'"'s finger touch on a touch screen in association with the displayed image, the process comprising:

a first step of displaying an original image on the display screen;

a second step of forming a screen pad defined as an in-screen touch pad, such that a reference image in the form of a reduced duplicate of the original image being displayed is displayed on the screen pad within the display screen, in a manner that the reference image is overlaid with the original image, in a translucent mode that renders the original image visible through the reference image, or an opaque mode that fails to render the original image visible through the reference image, wherein the reference image is obtained by reducing the original image with or without image simplification; and

a third step, operable in response to the user touching the finger to the screen pad, of detecting the finger touch position on the screen pad, and then recognizing the user'"'"'s input based on the detected finger touch position.