METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR MANAGING USER INTERFACE ELEMENTS ON A TOUCH-SCREEN DEVICE

• US 20150370442A1
• Filed: 02/08/2013
• Published: 12/24/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 02/08/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Motorola Solutions, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Motorola Solutions, Inc.
• Inventors: HU, HAI-QING, DUAN, MENG GE, WANG, JING
• Granted Patent: US 10,019,151 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04808 Several contacts: gestures triggering a specific function, e.g. scrolling, zooming, right-click, when the user establishes several contacts with the surface simultaneously; e.g. using several fingers or a combination of fingers and pen
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0488 using a touch-screen or digitiser, e.g. input of commands through traced gestures
• 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 method and apparatus for managing a touch-screen device is provided herein. During operation UI elements are arranged and re-arrange dynamically and based on user'"'"'s current contact locations on the touch screen. Preferably, the contact positions correspond to a user'"'"'s finger positions so that the UI elements are automatically placed where a person'"'"'s fingers make contact with the touch screen. Because the UI elements on the touch screen always “look for” the user'"'"'s fingers, instead of the user looking for them, it becomes much easier and more time-efficient for a user to find a particular UI element.

Claims

1. A method for managing user interface (UI) elements on a touch screen, the method comprising the steps of:

detecting more than a single simultaneous contact point on the touch screen; and

placing a UI element under each contact point on the touch screen in response to the detected finger contact points.

2. The method of claim 1 further comprising the steps of:

again detecting more than a single simultaneous contact point on the touch screen; and

repositioning the previously-placed UI elements under each again-detected contact point on the touch screen in response to the again-detected contact points.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the contact point is a finger contact point.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the step of placing a UI element under each finger contact point comprises the step of placing layers of UI elements under each finger contact point.

5. The method of claim 4 further comprising the steps of:

detecting that all contact points on the touch screen moved simultaneously a predetermined amount; and

swapping layers of UI elements in response to the detected motion.

6. The method of claim 5 wherein the step of detecting that all contact points on the touch screen have moved simultaneously comprises the step of determining if all contact points rotated right, rotated left, moved right, moved left, moved up, or moved down.

7. The method of claim 6 wherein a direction of movement indicates how layers are switched such that a movement in a first direction causes the layers to switch in a first manner while a movement in a second direction causes the layers to switch in a second manner.

8. The method of claim 1 wherein:

the UI elements are prioritized; and

the step of placing the UI element under each contact point comprises the step of placing UI elements based on their priority.

9. The method of claim 8 where higher priority UI elements are placed at higher angles from an axis and an origin.

10. The method of claim 8 wherein higher priority UI elements are placed at a left-most position on the touch screen.

11. The method of claim 8 where higher priority UI elements are placed at lower angles from an axis and an origin.

12. The method of claim 8 wherein higher priority UI elements are placed at a right-most position on the touch screen.

13. The method of claim 1 wherein a UI element comprises places on the touch screen where the user may interact, the interaction of which executes a particular function.

14. The method of claim 11 wherein the UI elements are taken from the group consisting of:

a window, a text box, a hyper link, a button, a drop down list, a scroll bar, a list box, a combo box, a radio button, a cycle button, a control knob, a data grid, and a switch.

15. A device:

an electronic module detecting more than a single simultaneous contact point on the touch screen; and

a graphics module placing a UI element under each contact point on the touch screen in response to the detected finger contact points.

16. The device of claim 15 where:

the electronic module again detects more than a single simultaneous contact point on the touch screen; and

the graphics module repositions the previously-placed UI elements under each again-detected contact point on the touch screen in response to the again-detected contact points.

17. The device of claim 15 wherein the contact point is a finger contact point.

18. The device of claim 15 wherein the UI elements are placed in layers under each finger contact point.

19. The device of claim 18 wherein:

the electronic module detects that all contact points on the touch screen moved simultaneously a predetermined amount; and

the graphics module swaps layers of UI elements in response to the detected motion.

20. The device of claim 19 the motion comprises all points rotated right, rotated left, moving right, moving left, moving up, or moving down.