MULTI-FUNCTIONAL HAND-HELD DEVICE

• US 20160070399A1
• Filed: 11/12/2015
• Published: 03/10/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 03/04/2005
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Inventors: HOTELLING, Steven P.
• Application Number:
  US14/940,010
• Publication Number:
  US 20160070399A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1626 with a single-body enclosure integrating a flat display, e.g. Personal Digital Assistants [PDAs]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1637 Details related to the display arrangement, including those related to the mounting of the display in the housing
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1656 Details related to functional adaptations of the enclosure, e.g. to provide protection against EMI, shock, water, or to host detachable peripherals like a mouse or removable expansions units like PCMCIA cards, or to provide access to internal components for maintenance or to removable storage supports like CDs or DVDs, or to mechanically mount accessories mounting of accessories to a computer display G06F1/1607; display hoods G06F1/1603; cooling arrangements for portable computers G06F1/203
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/169 the I/O peripheral being an integrated pointing device, e.g. trackball in the palm rest area, mini-joystick integrated between keyboard keys, touch pads or touch stripes G06F1/1643 takes precedence; constructional details of pointing devices G06F3/033
• 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 2203/04106 Multi-sensing digitiser, i.e. digitiser using at least two different sensing technologies simultaneously or alternatively, e.g. for detecting pen and finger, for saving power or for improving position detection
• 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 3/016 Input arrangements with force or tactile feedback as computer generated output to the user
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/02 Input arrangements using manually operated switches, e.g. using keyboards or dials
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0412 Digitisers structurally integrated in a display
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04144 using an array of force sensing means position sensing using the local deformation of sensor cells G06F3/0447
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0443 using a single layer of sensing electrodes
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0445 using two or more layers of sensing electrodes, e.g. using two layers of electrodes separated by a dielectric layer
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0446 using a grid-like structure of electrodes in at least two directions, e.g. using row and column electrodes
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0482 Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 3/36 using liquid crystals

Abstract

Disclosed herein is a multi-functional hand-held device capable of configuring user inputs based on how the device is to be used. Preferably, the multi-functional hand-held device has at most only a few physical buttons, keys, or switches so that its display size can be substantially increased. The multi-functional hand-held device also incorporates a variety of input mechanisms, including touch sensitive screens, touch sensitive housings, display actuators, audio input, etc. The device also incorporates a user-configurable GUI for each of the multiple functions of the devices.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

at an electronic device with a display, a touch-sensitive surface, and a force-sensing element that is configured to detecting an amount of force of contacts detected on the touch-sensitive surface;

displaying, on the display, a user interface that includes a first user interface object;

while displaying the first user interface object on the display, detecting a contact on the touch-sensitive surface at a location that corresponds to the first user interface object;

while detecting the contact on the touch-sensitive surface, detecting an input from the contact that includes detecting an increase in force of the contact; and

in response to detecting the input from the contact;

in accordance with a determination that the increase in force of the contact meets force criteria, the force criteria including a criterion that is met when the force of the contact is above a force threshold, displaying, on the display, a second user interface object that is associated with the force criteria and the first user interface object; and

in accordance with a determination that the increase in force of the contact does not meet the force criteria, updating, on the display, the user interface in accordance with input from the contact without displaying the second user interface object that is associated with the force criteria and the first user interface object.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the second user interface object is a contextual menu associated with the first user interface object.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein updating the user interface in accordance with input from the contact without displaying the second user interface object includes panning the user interface.

4. The method of claim 1, including, in conjunction with displaying the second user interface object, generating, with a haptic output element, a tactile output that corresponds to the increase in force of the contact.

5. The method of claim 4, including, in conjunction with generating the tactile output, generating, with an audio output element, an audible output that is coordinated in time with the tactile output.

6. The method of claim 4, wherein the input includes an increase in force above the force threshold, and the method includes:

after detecting the input while continuing to detect the contact on the touch-sensitive surface, detecting a decrease in force of the contact that includes a decrease in force of the contact below a respective force threshold; and

in response to detecting the decrease in force of the contact, generating, with the haptic output element, a tactile output that corresponds to the decrease in force of the contact.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the tactile output that corresponds to the decrease in force of the contact is different from the tactile output that corresponds to the increase in force of the contact.

8. The method of claim 6, wherein the tactile output that corresponds to the decrease in force of the contact is generated at a location on the touch-sensitive surface that is selected based on the location of the contact on the touch-sensitive surface.

9. The method of claim 4, wherein the tactile output that corresponds to the increase in force of the contact is generated at a location on the touch-sensitive surface that is selected based on the location of the contact on the touch-sensitive surface.

10. An electronic device, comprising:

one or more processors;

a display;

a touch-sensitive surface;

a force sensing element; and

memory, the memory storing one or more programs including instructions for;

displaying, on the display, a user interface that includes a first user interface object;

while displaying the first user interface object on the display, detecting a contact on the touch-sensitive surface at a location that corresponds to the first user interface object;

while detecting the contact on the touch-sensitive surface, detecting an input from the contact that includes detecting an increase in force of the contact; and

in response to detecting the input from the contact;

in accordance with a determination that the increase in force of the contact meets force criteria, the force criteria including a criterion that is met when the force of the contact is above a force threshold, displaying, on the display, a second user interface object that is associated with the force criteria and the first user interface object; and

in accordance with a determination that the increase in force of the contact does not meet the force criteria, update, on the display, the user interface in accordance with input from the contact without displaying the second user interface object that is associated with the force criteria and the first user interface object.

11. The electronic device of claim 10, wherein the second user interface object is a contextual menu associated with the first user interface object.

12. The electronic device of claim 10, wherein updating the user interface in accordance with input from the contact without displaying the second user interface object includes panning the user interface.

13. The electronic device of claim 10, the one or more programs further including instructions, in conjunction with displaying the second user interface object, for generating, with a haptic output element, a tactile output that corresponds to the increase in force of the contact.

14. The electronic device of claim 13, the one or more programs further including instructions, in conjunction with generating the tactile output, for generating, with an audio output element, an audible output that is coordinated in time with the tactile output.

15. The electronic device of claim 13, wherein the input includes an increase in force above the force threshold, and the one or more programs further include instructions for:

after detecting the input while continuing to detect the contact on the touch-sensitive surface, detecting a decrease in force of the contact that includes a decrease in force of the contact below a respective force threshold; and

in response to detecting the decrease in force of the contact, generating, with the haptic output element, a tactile output that corresponds to the decrease in force of the contact.

16. The electronic device of claim 15, wherein the tactile output that corresponds to the decrease in force of the contact is different from the tactile output that corresponds to the increase in force of the contact.

17. The electronic device of claim 15, wherein the tactile output that corresponds to the decrease in force of the contact is generated at a location on the touch-sensitive surface that is selected based on the location of the contact on the touch-sensitive surface.

18. The electronic of claim 13, wherein the tactile output that corresponds to the increase in force of the contact is generated at a location on the touch-sensitive surface that is selected based on the location of the contact on the touch-sensitive surface.

19. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing one or more programs for execution at an electronic device with a display, a touch-sensitive surface, and a force-sensing element, wherein the one or more programs include instructions which, when executed by the device cause the device to:

display, on the display, a user interface that includes a first user interface object;

while displaying the first user interface object on the display, detect a contact on the touch-sensitive surface at a location that corresponds to the first user interface object;

while detecting the contact on the touch-sensitive surface, detect an input from the contact that includes detecting an increase in force of the contact; and

in response to detecting the input from the contact;

in accordance with a determination that the increase in force of the contact meets force criteria, the force criteria including a criterion that is met when the force of the contact is above a force threshold, display, on the display, a second user interface object that is associated with the force criteria and the first user interface object; and

in accordance with a determination that the increase in force of the contact does not meet the force criteria, update, on the display, the user interface in accordance with input from the contact without displaying the second user interface object that is associated with the force criteria and the first user interface object.

20. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 19, wherein the second user interface object is a contextual menu associated with the first user interface object.

21. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 19, wherein updating the user interface in accordance with input from the contact without displaying the second user interface object includes panning the user interface.

22. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 19, the one or more programs further including instructions, in conjunction with displaying the second user interface object, for generating, with a haptic output element, a tactile output that corresponds to the increase in force of the contact.

23. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 22, the one or more programs including instructions, in conjunction with generating the tactile output, for generating, with an audio output element, an audible output that is coordinated in time with the tactile output.

24. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 22, wherein the input includes an increase in force above the force threshold, and the one or more programs further include instructions for:

after detecting the input while continuing to detect the contact on the touch-sensitive surface, detecting a decrease in force of the contact that includes a decrease in force of the contact below a respective force threshold; and

in response to detecting the decrease in force of the contact, generating, with the haptic output element, a tactile output that corresponds to the decrease in force of the contact.