Systems And Methods For Rendering Keyboard Layouts For A Touch Screen Display

• US 20140218298A1
• Filed: 02/07/2013
• Published: 08/07/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 02/07/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Dell Products LP (Dell Technologies Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Dell Products LP (Dell Technologies Inc.)
• Inventors: Law, Boon Kiat, Cheong, Seen Yee Cindy
• Granted Patent: US 9,448,642 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 345/168
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0216 Arrangements for ergonomically adjusting the disposition of keys of a keyboard for keyboards integrated in a laptop computer G06F1/1664
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0233 Character input methods
• 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

Systems and methods are disclosed for rendering soft keyboard layouts for a touchscreen display that are based on the unique finger characteristics of different individual users by taking into account and accommodating unique hand characteristics of different individual users and/or different user preferences for positioning of the user'"'"'s two hands on the touch screen. The disclosed systems and methods may be implemented in one example to render a custom soft keyboard layout for a user on a touch screen display having a touch display area that is larger than a standard keyboard layout.

Claims

1. An information handling system, comprising:

a touch screen display device;

at least one processing device coupled to provide display data for controlling display of visual images on the touch screen display device, the processing device also being coupled for receiving data signals representative of touched areas of the touch screen display device;

where the at least one processing device is configured to alternatively render at least two different soft keyboard layouts on the touch screen display, the two different soft keyboard layouts comprising;

a single unitary soft keyboard for accepting keyboard input from each of a left hand and a right hand of a given user, and

a segmented non-unitary soft keyboard having separated different portions with no keyboard portion therebetween, a first one of the separate different portions for accepting input from fingers of a left hand of a user and a second different one of the separate different portions for accepting input from fingers of a right hand of a given user; and

where the at least one processing device is further configured to determine which of the at least two soft keyboard layouts to render on the touch screen display device based on a measured distance between a first location on the touch screen touched by at least one finger of a user'"'"'s left hand and a second location on the touch screen touched by at least one finger of a user'"'"'s right hand, and to render this determined soft keyboard layout on the touch screen display device.

2. The system of claim 1, where the at least one processing device is further configured to:

compare the measured distance between the first location on the touch screen touched by at least one finger of a user'"'"'s left hand and the second location on the touch screen touched by at least one finger of a user'"'"'s right hand to a pre-designated value; and

then;

render the segmented non-unitary soft keyboard layout on the touch screen display device if the measured distance between the first and second locations is greater than or equal to the pre-designated value, and

render the single unitary soft keyboard layout on the touch screen display device if the measured distance between the first and second locations is less than the pre-designated value.

3. The system of claim 1, where the single unitary soft keyboard is a QWERTY keyboard;

and where the segmented non-unitary soft keyboard is a “

Thumbs”

style keyboard.

4. The system of claim 1, where the touch screen display device has a display area of sufficient size to render a soft keyboard having a keyboard width that is greater than the outer width of a standard full-size QWERTY keyboard.

5. The system of claim 1, where the touch screen display device has a display area of greater or equal to about 21 diagonal inches.

6. The system of claim 1, where the touch screen display device further comprises haptics circuitry configured to impart haptics motion to the touch area of the touch screen display device;

where the at least one processing device is coupled to the haptics circuitry to control the haptics circuitry to impart haptics motion to the touch area of the touch screen display device; and

where the at least one processing device is further configured to impart haptics motion to the first and second locations on the touch screen in response to determining which of the at least two soft keyboard layouts to render on the touch screen display device.

7. The system of claim 1, where the rendered keyboard comprises a single unitary soft keyboard layout;

and where the at least one processing device is further configured to resize the single unitary soft keyboard layout on the touch screen display device based on a measured distance between separate locations on the touch screen touched by at least two different fingers on the same left or right hand of a user.

8. The system of claim 7, where the at least one processing device is further configured to resize the single unitary soft keyboard layout on the touch screen display device based on an average of the measured distance between separate locations on the touch screen touched by index and little fingers of the left hand of the user and the measured distance between separate locations on the touch screen touched by index and little fingers of the right hand of the user.

9. The system of claim 7, where the touch screen display device further comprises haptics circuitry configured to impart haptics motion to the touch area of the touch screen display device;

where the at least one processing device is coupled to the haptics circuitry to control the haptics circuitry to impart haptics motion to the touch area of the touch screen display device; and

where the at least one processing device is further configured to impart haptics motion to the separate locations on the touch screen touched by at least two different fingers on the same left or right hand of the user in response to completion of resizing the rendered single unitary soft keyboard layout on the touch screen display device.

10. The system of claim 1, where the at least one processing device is further configured to:

automatically determine and render the determined soft keyboard layout on the touch screen display device in response to detection of placement of the at least one finger of a user'"'"'s left hand at the first location on the touch screen and placement of at least one finger of the user'"'"'s right hand at the second location on the touch screen; and

then to activate the rendered soft keyboard for user key input after completion of the rendering of the rendered keyboard layout without requiring the removal or movement of the at least one finger of the user'"'"'s left hand from the first location on the touch screen or removal or movement of the at least one finger of the user'"'"'s right hand from the second location on the touch screen.

11. A method of rendering a soft keyboard on a touch screen display device, the method comprising:

using at least one processing device to provide display data for controlling display of visual images on the touch screen display device and to receive data signals representative of touched areas of the touch screen display device so as to alternatively render at least two different soft keyboard layouts on the touch screen display, the two different soft keyboard layouts comprising;

a single unitary soft keyboard for accepting keyboard input from each of a left hand and a right hand of a given user, and

a segmented non-unitary soft keyboard having separated different portions with no keyboard portion therebetween, a first one of the separate different portions for accepting input from fingers of a left hand of a user and a second different one of the separate different portions for accepting input from fingers of a right hand of a given user; and

using the at least one processing device to;

measure a distance between a first location on the touch screen touched by at least one finger of a user'"'"'s left hand and a second location on the touch screen touched by at least one finger of a user'"'"'s right hand,

determine which of the at least two soft keyboard layouts to render on the touch screen display device based on based on the measured distance between the first location on the touch screen touched by at least one finger of the user'"'"'s left hand and the second location on the touch screen touched by at least one finger of the user'"'"'s right hand, and

render the determined soft keyboard layout on the touch screen display device.

12. The method of claim 11, further comprising using the at least one processing device to compare the measured distance between the first location on the touch screen touched by at least one finger of the user'"'"'s left hand and the second location on the touch screen touched by at least one finger of the user'"'"'s right hand to a pre-designated value;

and then;

render the segmented non-unitary soft keyboard layout on the touch screen display device if the measured distance between the first and second locations is greater than or equal to the pre-designated value; and

render the single unitary soft keyboard layout on the touch screen display device if the measured distance between the first and second locations is less than the pre-designated value.

13. The method of claim 11, where the single unitary soft keyboard is a QWERTY keyboard;

and where the segmented non-unitary soft keyboard is a “

Thumbs”

style keyboard.

14. The method of claim 11, where the touch screen display device has a display area of sufficient size to render a soft keyboard having a keyboard width that is greater than the outer width of a standard full-size QWERTY keyboard.

15. The system of claim 11, where the touch screen display device has a display area of greater or equal to about 21 diagonal inches.

16. The method of claim 11, further comprising using the at least one processing device to impart haptics motion to the first and second locations on the touch screen in response to determining which of the at least two soft keyboard layouts to render on the touch screen display device.

17. The method of claim 11, where the rendered keyboard comprises a single unitary soft keyboard layout;

and where the method further comprises using the at least one processing device to resize the single unitary soft keyboard layout on the touch screen display device based on a measured distance between separate locations on the touch screen touched by at least two different fingers on the same left or right hand of a user.

18. The method of claim 17, further comprises using the at least one processing device to resize the single unitary soft keyboard layout on the touch screen display device based on an average of the measured distance between separate locations on the touch screen touched by index and little fingers of the left hand of the user and the measured distance between separate locations on the touch screen touched by index and little fingers of the right hand of the user.

19. The method of claim 17, further comprising using the at least one processing device to impart haptics motion to the separate locations on the touch screen touched by at least two different fingers on the same left or right hand of the user in response to completion of resizing the rendered single unitary soft keyboard layout on the touch screen display device.

20. The method of claim 17, further comprising using the at least one processing device to:

automatically determine and render the determined soft keyboard layout on the touch screen display device in response to detection of placement of the at least one finger of a user'"'"'s left hand at the first location on the touch screen and placement of at least one finger of the user'"'"'s right hand at the second location on the touch screen; and

then to activate the rendered soft keyboard for user key input after completion of the rendering of the rendered keyboard layout without requiring the removal or movement of the at least one finger of the user'"'"'s left hand from the first location on the touch screen or removal or movement of the at least one finger of the user'"'"'s right hand from the second location on the touch screen.