Multi-Application Environment

• US 20150317062A1
• Filed: 07/15/2015
• Published: 11/05/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 05/27/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Inventors: Jarrett, Robert J., Satterfield, Jesse Clay, Anderson, Bret P., Wong, Tsz Yan, Sareen, Chaitanya Dev, Miner, Patrice L., Harris, Jensen, Matthews, David A., Nan, Jennifer, Worley, Matthew I., Sundelin, Nils Anders
• Granted Patent: US 10,303,325 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/017 Gesture based interaction, e.g. based on a set of recognized hand gestures interaction based on gestures traced on a digitiser G06F3/04883
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04817 using icons graphical or visual programming using iconic symbols G06F8/34
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04842 Selection of displayed objects or displayed text elements G06F3/0482 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04883 for inputting data by handwriting, e.g. gesture or text
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/451 Execution arrangements for user interfaces

Abstract

This document describes techniques and apparatuses enabling a multi-application environment. In some embodiments, these techniques and apparatuses enable multi-application environments having combinations of immersive interfaces, windows-based interfaces, and a desktop treated as an immersive interface.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method comprising:

presenting an interface associated with an application within a multi-application environment;

receiving, over the multi-interface environment, a portion of a gesture requesting access to an application-selection menu of the multi-application environment; and

presenting, in response to the portion of the gesture, the application-selection menu within the multi-application environment.

2. The computer-implemented method as described in claim 1, wherein each application selectable from the application-selection menu is represented by a respective reduced-size image of an interface associated with the selectable application.

3. The computer-implemented method as described in claim 1, wherein the interface is a first interface, the application is a first application, the portion of the gesture is a first portion of the gesture, and the method further comprises receiving, over the application-selection menu, a second portion of the gesture indicating selection of a second interface of a second application for presentation within the multi-application environment.

4. The computer-implemented method as described in claim 3, further comprising presenting, responsive to the second portion of the gesture, a portion of the second interface of the second application within the multi-application environment.

5. The computer-implemented method as described in claim 4, further comprising:

receiving, a third portion of the gesture in a direction opposite to that of the second portion of the gesture; and

ceasing, responsive to the third portion of the gesture, to present the portion of the second interface of the second application within the multi-application environment.

6. The computer-implemented method as described in claim 4, further comprising:

receiving, a third portion of the gesture in a direction substantially similar to that of the second portion of the gesture; and

presenting, responsive to the third portion of the gesture, the second interface of the second application fully within the multi-application environment.

7. The computer-implemented method as described in claim 6, wherein the multi-application environment comprises multiple regions in which to present interfaces associated with applications and the method further comprises selecting, based on the direction of the third portion of the gesture or an end point of the gesture, one of the multiple regions in which to present the second interface of the second application.

8. The computer-implemented method as described in claim 1, wherein the gesture is an edge gesture having a starting point at an edge of the multi-application environment and a later point not at the edge of the multi-application environment.

9. The computer-implemented method as described in claim 1, wherein the application-selection menu comprises a queue of previously-interacted-with applications.

10. The computer-implemented method as described in claim 9, wherein the previously-interacted with applications of the queue are arranged from most-recently-interacted-with to least-recently-interacted-with applications.

11. The computer-implemented method as described in claim 10, wherein an order of the queue is circular such that the most-recently-interacted-with application follows the least-recently-interacted-with application in the order of application queue.

12. The computer-implemented method as described in claim 9, wherein the method further comprises receiving, over the queue, one or more subsequent portions of the gesture and advancing, responsive to the one or more subsequent portions of the gesture, through the queue of previously-interacted-with applications.

13. A system comprising:

one or more processors;

one or more computer-readable storage media storing instructions that, responsive to execution by the one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to perform operations comprising;

presenting, via a display associated with the system, a multi-application environment having two or more regions in which to present interfaces;

receiving, over the multi-interface environment, a first portion of a gesture requesting access to an application-selection menu of the multi-application environment;

presenting, in response to receiving the first portion of the gesture, the application-selection menu within the multi-application environment;

receiving, over the application-selection menu, a second portion of the gesture selecting an application from the application-selection menu; and

presenting, in response to the second portion of the gesture, an interface associated with the application in one of the two or more regions of the multi-application environment.

14. The system as described in claim 13, wherein the second portion of the gesture is an end portion of the gesture, application-selection interface is configured as a queue of selectable applications, and the operations further comprise:

receiving, over the application-selection interface, one or more intermediate portions of the gesture; and

advancing, in response to the one or more intermediate portions of the gesture, through the selectable applications of the queue.

15. The system as described in claim 14, wherein the intermediate portions of the gesture comprise a combination of circular gesture portions or back-and-forth gesture portions.

16. The system as described in claim 14, wherein the selectable applications of the queue comprise previously-interacted-with applications of the multi-application environment.

17. The system as described in claim 13, wherein the gesture is an edge gesture having a starting point at an edge of the multi-application environment and a later point not at the edge of the multi-application environment.

18. The system as described in claim 13, wherein the system is implemented as a gaming device, smart phone, laptop computer, tablet computer, or set-top box.

19. One or more computer-readable storage media comprising instructions that, responsive to execution by one or more hardware-based processors, cause the one or more hardware-based processors to perform operations:

presenting a first interface associated with a first application within a first region of a multi-application environment, the multi-application environment having multiple regions in which to present interfaces without frame controls;

receiving, over the multi-interface environment, a first portion of a gesture requesting access to an application-selection menu of the multi-application environment;

presenting, in response to the first portion of the gesture, the application-selection menu within the multi-application environment;

receiving, over the application-selection menu, a second portion of the gesture selecting a second application; and

presenting, in response to the second portion of the gesture, a second interface associated with the second application in a second region of the multi-application environment.

20. One or more computer-readable storage media as described in claim 19, wherein the operations further comprise moving or re-sizing the first interface to a third region of the multi-application environment to accommodate the presentation of the second interface in the second region.