Methods for determining a cursor position from a finger contact with a touch screen display

• US 8,013,839 B2
• Filed: 11/30/2010
• Issued: 09/06/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 09/06/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Inventors: Christie, Greg, Ording, Bas, Forstall, Scott
• Primary Examiner(s): SHERMAN, STEPHEN G
• Application Number:
  US12/957,185
• Publication Number:
  US 20110074677A1
• Time in Patent Office: 280 Days
• Field of Search: 345173-178, 345/157, 178 1801- 1809, 178/18.11, 715/810, 715856-862
• US Class Current: 345/157
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04186 Touch location disambiguation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04812 Interaction techniques based on cursor appearance or behaviour, e.g. being affected by the presence of displayed objects
• 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 portable device with a touch screen display detects a contact area of a finger with the touch screen display and then determines a first position associated with the contact area. The cursor position of the finger contact is determined, at least in part, based on: the first position, one or more distances between the first position and one or more of the user interface objects; and one or more activation susceptibility numbers, each associated with a respective user interface object in the plurality of user interface objects. If the cursor position falls into the hidden hit region of a virtual push button on the touch screen display, the portable device is activated to perform operations associated with the virtual push button.

Claims

1. A portable electronic device, comprising:

a touch screen display;

one or more processors;

memory; and

one or more programs, wherein the one or more programs are stored in the memory and configured to be executed by the one or more processors, the one or more programs including instructions for;

displaying a plurality of user interface objects on the touch screen display;

detecting a contact area of a finger with the touch screen display;

determining a first position associated with the contact area; and

determining a cursor position point, at least in part, based on;

the first position,

one or more distances between the first position and one or more of the user interface objects; and

one or more activation susceptibility numbers, each associated with a respective user interface object in the plurality of user interface objects.

2. The device of claim 1, wherein, for a stationary contact of a finger with the display, the detected contact area corresponds to the maximum contact area of the finger with the display during a time period corresponding to the stationary contact.

3. The device of claim 1, wherein the contact area is elliptical with a major axis and the first position is offset from the centroid of the contact area along the major axis.

4. The device of claim 1, wherein a user interface object associated with an activation susceptibility number is easier to activate if the activation susceptibility number has a first sign and is harder to activate if the activation susceptibility number has a second sign opposite to the first sign.

5. The device of claim 1, wherein determining the cursor position point is based on:

the first position,

the activation susceptibility number associated with a user interface object that is closest to the first position, and

the distance between the first position and the user interface object that is closest to the first position.

6. The device of claim 1, wherein the cursor position point is offset from the first position by an amount given by the formula

7. The device of claim 1, wherein the cursor position point is the first position if the first position is within one of the plurality of user interface objects on the display.

8. The device of claim 1, further comprising instructions for activating a user interface object at the cursor position point.

9. The device of claim 1, wherein the activation susceptibility numbers are context dependent in an application.

10. The device of claim 1, wherein activation susceptibility numbers associated with soft keyboard keys change as a word is typed with the soft keyboard keys.

11. A computer readable storage medium storing one or more programs, the one or more programs comprising instructions, which when executed by a portable electronic device with a touch screen display, cause the portable electronic device to:

display a plurality of user interface objects on the touch screen display;

detect a contact area of a finger with the touch screen display;

determine a first position associated with the contact area; and

determine a cursor position point, at least in part, based on;

the first position,

one or more distances between the first position and one or more of the user interface objects; and

one or more activation susceptibility numbers, each associated with a respective user interface object in the plurality of user interface objects.

12. The computer readable storage medium of claim 11, wherein, for a stationary contact of a finger with the display, the detected contact area corresponds to the maximum contact area of the finger with the display during a time period corresponding to the stationary contact.

13. The computer readable storage medium of claim 11, wherein the contact area is elliptical with a major axis and the first position is offset from the centroid of the contact area along the major axis.

14. The computer readable storage medium of claim 11, wherein a user interface object associated with an activation susceptibility number is easier to activate if the activation susceptibility number has a first sign and is harder to activate if the activation susceptibility number has a second sign opposite to the first sign.

15. The computer readable storage medium of claim 11, wherein determining the cursor position point is based on:

the first position,

the activation susceptibility number associated with a user interface object that is closest to the first position, and

the distance between the first position and the user interface object that is closest to the first position.

16. The computer readable storage medium of claim 11, wherein the cursor position point is offset from the first position by an amount given by the formula

17. The computer readable storage medium of claim 11, wherein the cursor position point is the first position if the first position is within one of the plurality of user interface objects on the display.

18. The computer readable storage medium of claim 11, further comprising instructions that cause the device to activate a user interface object at the cursor position point.

19. The computer readable storage medium of claim 11, wherein the activation susceptibility numbers are context dependent in an application.

20. The computer readable storage medium of claim 11, wherein activation susceptibility numbers associated with soft keyboard keys change as a word is typed with the soft keyboard keys.

21. A method, comprising:

at a portable electronic device with a touch screen display;

displaying a plurality of user interface objects on the touch screen display;

detecting a contact area of a finger with the touch screen display;

determining a first position associated with the contact area; and

determining a cursor position point, at least in part, based on;

the first position,

one or more distances between the first position and one or more of the user interface objects; and

one or more activation susceptibility numbers, each associated with a respective user interface object in the plurality of user interface objects.