Feedback during crossing of zoom levels

• US 8,149,249 B1
• Filed: 09/30/2011
• Issued: 04/03/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 09/22/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Google Inc. (Alphabet Inc.)
• Inventors: Oplinger, Andrew
• Primary Examiner(s): Yang, Ryan R
• Application Number:
  US13/249,658
• Time in Patent Office: 186 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 345/661
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04806 Zoom, i.e. interaction techniques or interactors for controlling the zooming operation
• 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 3/04883 for inputting data by handwriting, e.g. gesture or text
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2340/045 Zooming at least part of an image, i.e. enlarging it or shrinking it
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 5/00 Control arrangements or circuits for visual indicators common to cathode-ray tube indicators and other visual indicators image data processing or generation, in general G06T

Abstract

Aspects of this disclosure are directed to zooming into or out of image content. A user may request to zoom into or out of image content by inputting a multi-touch gesture. The request may reach one or more discrete zoom levels of a plurality of discrete zoom levels. Discrete zoom levels may indicate specific magnification factors for which a device may be able to clearly render image content. The device may output an indication when the request reaches the one or more discrete zoom levels.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

receiving a multi-touch gesture input comprising a request to zoom in or zoom out of image content that is displayed using a touch-sensitive surface of a device;

determining, during receipt of the multi-touch gesture input using the touch-sensitive surface, whether the request to zoom in or zoom out of the image content has reached one or more discrete zoom levels of a plurality of discrete zoom levels, wherein the one or more discrete zoom levels are between a maximum and a minimum zoom boundary for displaying the image content, and wherein each one of the one or more discrete zoom levels comprises a magnification factor for a stored version of the image content that is zoomed in or zoomed out to that magnification factor; and

outputting, by the device, an indication to alert a user when the request reaches the one or more discrete zoom levels.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining one or more magnification factors during the receipt of the request; and

determining whether the one or more magnification factors correspond to the one or more discrete zoom levels,

wherein outputting the indication comprises outputting the indication when the request reaches the one or more discrete zoom levels based on the determination of whether the one or more magnification factors correspond to the one or more discrete zoom levels.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein determining the one or more magnification factors during receipt of the request comprises determining the one or more magnification factors during increments of the request.

4. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

determining a distance traversed by the multi-touch gesture input,

wherein determining the one or more magnification factors during the receipt of the request comprises determining the one or more magnification factors during receipt of the request based on the distance traversed by the multi-touch gesture input.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein determining the distance traversed by the multi-touch gesture input comprises determining a distance that two fingers moved in providing the multi-touch gesture input.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving the request to zoom in or zoom out of image content comprises receiving the request to zoom in or zoom out of image content with a two-finger touch technique.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein outputting the indication comprises outputting the indication for every discrete zoom level of the plurality of discrete zoom levels that is reached by the request.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein outputting the indication comprises outputting at least one of a physical indication, an audio indication, and a visual indication to alert the user when the request reaches the one or more discrete zoom levels.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein outputting the physical indication comprises vibrating the device.

10. The method of claim 8, wherein outputting the audio indication comprises outputting a sound when the request reaches the one or more discrete zoom levels.

11. The method of claim 8, wherein outputting the visual indication comprises outputting at least one of one or more magnification factors of the one or more discrete zoom levels, and changing a color of the touch-sensitive surface of the device that displays the image content.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the stored version of the image content that is zoomed in or zoomed out to that magnification factor is stored in an external server.

13. A computer-readable storage medium comprising instructions that cause one or more processors to:

receive a multi-touch gesture input comprising a request to zoom in or zoom out of image content that is displayed using a touch-sensitive surface of a device;

determine, during receipt of the multi-touch gesture input using the touch-sensitive surface, whether the request to zoom in or zoom out of the image content has reached one or more discrete zoom levels of a plurality of discrete zoom levels, wherein the one or more discrete zoom levels are between a maximum and a minimum zoom boundary for displaying the image content, and wherein each one of the one or more discrete zoom levels comprises a magnification factor for a stored version of the image content that is zoomed in or zoomed out to that magnification factor; and

output, by the device, an indication to alert a user when the request reaches the one or more discrete zoom levels.

14. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 13, further comprising instructions that cause the one or more processors to:

determine one or more magnification factors during the receipt of the request; and

determine whether the one or more magnification factors correspond to the one or more discrete zoom levels,

wherein the instructions that cause the one or more processors to output the indication comprise instructions that cause the one or more processors to output the indication when the request reaches the one or more discrete zoom levels based on the determination of whether the one or more magnification factors correspond to the one or more discrete zoom levels.

15. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 14, wherein the instructions that cause the one or more processors to determine the one or more magnification factors during receipt of the request comprise instructions that cause the one or more processors to determine the one or more magnification factors during increments of the request.

16. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 14, further comprising instructions that cause the one or more processors to:

determine a distance traversed by the multi-touch gesture input,

wherein the instructions that cause the one or more processors to determine the one or more magnification factors during the receipt of the request comprise instructions that cause the one or more processors to determine the one or more magnification factors during receipt of the request based on the distance traversed by the multi-touch gesture input.

17. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 16, wherein the instructions that cause the one or more processors to determine the distance traversed by the multi-touch gesture input comprise instructions that cause the one or more processors to determine a distance that two fingers moved in providing the multi-touch gesture input.

18. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 13, wherein the instructions that cause the one or more processors to receive the request to zoom in or zoom out of image content comprise instructions that cause the one or more processors to receive the request to zoom in or zoom out of image content with a two-finger touch technique.

19. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 13, wherein the instructions that cause the one or more processors to output the indication comprise instructions that cause the one or more processors to output the indication for every discrete zoom level of the plurality of discrete zoom levels that is reached by the request.

20. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 13, wherein the instructions that cause the one or more processors to output the indication comprise instructions that cause the one or more processors to output at least one of a physical indication, an audio indication, and a visual indication to alert the user when the request reaches the one or more discrete zoom levels.

21. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 20, wherein the instructions that cause the one or more processors to output the physical indication comprise instructions that cause the one or more processors to vibrate the device.

22. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 20, wherein the instructions that cause the one or more processors to output the audio indication comprise instructions that cause the one or more processors to output a sound when the request reaches the one or more discrete zoom levels.

23. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 20, wherein the instructions that cause the one or more processors to output the visual indication comprise instructions that cause the one or more processors to output at least one of one or more magnification factors of the one or more discrete zoom levels, and changing a color of the touch-sensitive surface of the device that displays the image content.

24. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 13, wherein the stored version of the image content that is zoomed in or zoomed out to that magnification factor is stored in an external server.

25. A device comprising:

a touch-sensitive surface that receives a multi-touch gesture input comprising a request to zoom in or zoom out of image content that is displayed using a touch-sensitive surface of the device;

means for determining, during receipt of the multi-touch gesture input using the touch-sensitive surface, whether the request to zoom in or zoom out of the image content has reached one or more discrete zoom levels of a plurality of discrete zoom levels, wherein the one or more discrete zoom levels are between a maximum and a minimum zoom boundary for displaying the image content, and wherein each one of the one or more discrete zoom levels comprises a magnification factor for a stored version of the image content that is zoomed in or zoomed out to that magnification factor; and

one or more processors that output an indication to alert a user when the request reaches the one or more discrete zoom levels.