Recognizing multiple input point gestures

• US 7,907,125 B2
• Filed: 01/05/2007
• Issued: 03/15/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 01/05/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Vale, Peter, Duncan, Weiss, John Guido Atkins
• Primary Examiner(s): Mengistu; Amare
• Assistant Examiner(s): Guertin; Aaron M
• Application Number:
  US11/620,557
• Publication Number:
  US 20080165132A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,530 Days
• Field of Search: 345173-179, 715/863, 178 1801- 1811
• US Class Current: 345/173
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04104 Multi-touch detection in digitiser, i.e. details about the simultaneous detection of a plurality of touching locations, e.g. multiple fingers or pen and finger
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/041 Digitisers, e.g. for touch screens or touch pads, characterised by the transducing means
• 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

Abstract

The present invention extends to methods, systems, and computer program products for recognizing multiple input point gestures. A recognition module receives an ordered set of points indicating that contacts have been detected in a specified order at multiple different locations on a multi-touch input surface. The recognition module determines the position of subsequently detected locations (e.g., third detected location) relative to (e.g., to the left of right of) line segments connecting previously detected locations (e.g., connecting first and second detected locations). The gesture module also detects whether line segments connecting subsequently detected locations (e.g., connecting third and fourth detected locations) intersect line segments connecting previously detected locations (e.g., connecting first and second detected locations). The gesture module recognizes an input gesture based on the relative positions and whether or not line segments intersect. The gesture module then identifies a corresponding input operation to be performed.

Claims

1. At a computer system, the computer system including a processor, system memory, and a multi-touch input surface, a method for recognizing a multiple input point gesture, the method comprising:

an act of receiving an ordered set of points, indicating at least that;

contact with the multi-touch input surface was detected at a first location on the multi-touch input surface;

contact with the multi-touch input surface was detected at a second location on the multi-touch input surface simultaneously with the detected contact at the first location, subsequent to detecting contact with the multi-touch input surface at the first location; and

contact with the multi-touch input surface was detected at a third location on the multi-touch input surface simultaneously with the detected contact at the first location and at the second location, subsequent to detecting contact with the multi-touch input surface at the second location;

an act of calculating a line segment between the first location and the second location;

an act of determining that the third location is on a specified side of the line segment; and

an act of the processor recognizing an input gesture corresponding to detected contact at three or more locations on the multi-touch input surface based at least on the determination that the third location is on the specified side of the line segment.

2. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the act of receiving an ordered set of points comprises an act of receiving an ordered set of points indicating that contact with the multi-touch input surface was detected at a fourth location on the multi-touch input surface simultaneously with the detected contact at the first location, at the second location, and at the third location, subsequent to detecting contact with the multi-touch input surface at the third location;

and further comprising;

an act of calculating a second line segment between the second location and the third location; and

an act of calculating a third line segment between the third location and the fourth location.

3. The method as recited in claim 2, further comprising:

an act of determining that the fourth location is on the specified side of the second line segment.

4. The method as recited in claim 3, further comprising:

an act of detecting that the third line segment intersects with the first line segment.

5. The method as recited in claim 4, wherein the act of recognizing an input gesture corresponding to detected contact at three or more locations on the multi-touch input surface comprises an act of recognizing an input gesture corresponding to detected contact at four or more locations on the multi-touch input surface based at least on the determination that the fourth location is on the specified side of the second line segment and that the third line segment intersects with the first line segment.

6. The method as recited in claim 3, further comprising:

an act of detecting that the third line segment does not intersect with the first line segment.

7. The method as recited in claim 6, wherein the act of recognizing an input gesture corresponding to detected contact at three or more locations on the multi-touch input surface comprises an act of recognizing an input gesture corresponding to detected contact at four or more locations on the multi-touch input surface based at least on the determination that the fourth location is on the specified side of the second line segment and that the third line segment does not intersect with the first line segment.

8. The method as recited in claim 2, further comprising:

an act of determining that the fourth location is not on the specified side of the second line segment.

9. The method as recited in claim 8, wherein the act of recognizing an input gesture corresponding to detected contact at three or more locations on the multi-touch input surface comprises an act of recognizing an input gesture corresponding to detected contact at four or more locations on the multi-touch input surface based at least on the determination that the fourth location is not on the specified side of the second line segment.

10. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the act of recognizing an input gesture corresponding to detected contact at three or more locations on the multi-touch input surface comprises an act of recognizing a corresponding input gesture corresponding to detected contact at five locations on the multi-touch input surface.

11. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the act of recognizing an input gesture corresponding to detected contact at three or more locations on the multi-touch input surface comprises an act of recognizing an input gesture corresponding to detected contact at three or more locations on the multi-touch input surface based on the order of the detected contact at the three or more locations.

12. The method as recited in claim 1, further comprising an act of looking up the meaning of the input gesture in a table of known input gestures.

13. A computer program product for use at a computer system including a multi-touch input surface, the computer program product for implementing a method for recognizing a multiple input point gesture, the computer program product comprising one or more computer storage devices having stored thereon computer-executable instructions that, when executed at a processor, cause the computer system to perform the following:

receive an ordered set of points, indicating at least that;

contact with the multi-touch input surface was detected at a first location on the multi-touch input surface;

contact with the multi-touch input surface was detected at a second location on the multi-touch input surface simultaneously with the detected contact at the first location, subsequent to detecting contact with the multi-touch input surface at the first location;

contact with the multi-touch input surface was detected at a third location on the multi-touch input surface simultaneously with the detected contact at the first location and at the second location, subsequent to detecting contact with the multi-touch input surface at the second location;

calculate a line segment between the first location and the second location;

determine that the third location is on a specified side of the line segment; and

recognize an input gesture corresponding to detected contact at three or more locations on the multi-touch input surface based at least on the determination that the third location is on the specified side of the line segment.

14. The computer program product as recited in claim 13, wherein computer-executable instructions that, when executed at a processor, cause the computer system to receive an ordered set of points comprise computer-executable instructions that, when executed at a processor, cause the computer system to receive an ordered set indicating that contact with the multi-touch input surface was detected at a fourth location on the multi-touch input surface simultaneously with the detected contact at the first location, at the second location, and at the third location, subsequent to detecting contact with the multi-touch input surface at the third location;

and further comprising computer-executable instructions that, when executed at a processor, cause the computer system to perform the following;

calculate a second line segment between the second location and the third location; and

calculate a third line segment between the third location and the fourth location.

15. The computer program product as recited in claim 14, further comprising computer-executable instructions that, when executed at a processor, cause the computer system to perform the following:

an act of determining that the fourth location is on the specified side of the second line segment.

16. The computer program product as recited in claim 15, further comprising computer-executable instructions that, when executed at a processor, cause the computer system to perform the following:

detect that the third line segment intersects with the first line segment.

17. The computer program product as recited in claim 16, wherein computer-executable instructions that, when executed at a processor, cause the computer system to recognize an input gesture corresponding to detected contact at three or more locations on the multi-touch input surface comprise computer-executable instructions that, when executed at a processor, cause the computer system to recognize an input gesture corresponding to detected contact at four or more locations on the multi-touch input surface based at least on the determination that the fourth location is on the specified side of the second line segment and that the third line segment intersects with the first line segment.

18. The computer program product as recited in claim 15, further comprising computer-executable instructions that, when executed at a processor, cause the computer system to perform the following:

detect that the third line segment does not intersect with the first line segment.

19. The computer program product as recited in claim 18, wherein computer-executable instructions that, when executed at a processor, cause the computer system to recognize an input gesture corresponding to detected contact at three or more locations on the multi-touch input surface comprise computer-executable instructions that, when executed at a processor, cause the computer system to recognize an input gesture corresponding to detected contact at four or more locations on the multi-touch input surface based at least on the determination that the fourth location is on the specified side of the second line segment and that the third line segment does not intersect with the first line segment.

20. The computer program product as recited in claim 14, further comprising computer-executable instructions that, when executed at a processor, cause the computer system to perform the following:

determine that the fourth location is not on the specified side of the second line segment.

21. The computer program product as recited in claim 20, wherein computer-executable instructions that, when executed at a processor, cause the computer system to recognize an input gesture corresponding to detected contact at three or more locations on the multi-touch input surface comprise computer-executable instructions that, when executed at a processor, cause the computer system to recognize an input gesture corresponding to detected contact at four or more locations on the multi-touch input surface based at least on the determination that the fourth location is not on the specified side of the second line segment.