Content transfer involving a gesture

• US 8,380,225 B2
• Filed: 09/14/2009
• Issued: 02/19/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 09/14/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Cheng, Long, Xie, Yi
• Primary Examiner(s): Arevalo, Joseph
• Application Number:
  US12/558,782
• Publication Number:
  US 20110065459A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,254 Days
• Field of Search: 345/156, 345/173, 345/661, 345/558, 455/500, 455/41.3, 455/412.1, 455/456.3, 455/425, 386/280, 386/284, 386/285, 386/343
• US Class Current: 455/456.3
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/017 Gesture based interaction, e.g. based on a set of recognized hand gestures interaction based on gestures traced on a digitiser G06F3/04883
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0488 using a touch-screen or digitiser, e.g. input of commands through traced gestures
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72412 using two-way short-range wireless interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/22 including a touch pad, a touch sensor or a touch detector digitizers for touch screens G06F3/041
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/64 file transfer between terminals download of applications H04M1/72406; transfer of messages, e.g. SMS, e-mail or MMS H04M1/7243
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/02 Services making use of location information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/023 using mutual or relative location information between multiple location based services [LBS] targets or of distance thresholds
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/029 Location-based management or tracking services
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/21 for social networking applications

Abstract

Content transfer involving a gesture is described. In an implementation, a method is implemented by a mobile communications device that includes recognizing a gesture input via a touchscreen of the mobile communications device that is indicative of a direction, the touchscreen including a display of content. One or more other mobile communications devices are located that are positioned, approximately, along the indicated direction of the gesture. A communication is formed to transfer the content to the located one or more other mobile communications devices.

Claims

1. A method implemented by a mobile communications device, the method comprising:

recognizing a gesture input via a touchscreen of the mobile communications device that is indicative of a direction and a selection of content displayed on the touchscreen;

locating, at predetermined intervals, one or more other mobile communications devices that are positioned, approximately, along the indicated direction of the gesture, the locating based at least in part on data received from a server via a wireless network that indicates the location of the one or more other mobile communications devices, the data includes coordinates of the one or more other mobile communications devices; and

the locating includes computing a relative location of the one or more other mobile communications devices to the mobile communications device using the data and coordinates of the mobile communications device; and

responsive to determining that data describing locations of the one or more other mobile communications devices is up to date, forming a communication to transfer the content indicated by the gesture to the located one or more other mobile communications devices.

2. A method as described in claim 1, wherein the gesture is indicative of the relative direction from a current orientation of the mobile communications device.

3. A method as described in claim 1, wherein the relative direction corresponds to one of a plurality of edges of the touchscreen.

4. A method as described in claim 1, wherein the locating is performed before the recognizing.

5. A method as described in claim 1, further comprising displaying an option on the touchscreen to select a particular said other mobile communications device if two or more other said mobile communications devices are located along the indicated direction of the gesture.

6. A method as described in claim 1, wherein the gesture is a drag or flick.

7. A method comprising:

receiving a communication of content at a mobile communications device from another mobile communications device, the content communicated by the other mobile communications device responsive to recognition of a gesture that is indicative of a direction and a selection of the content displayed on a touchscreen of the other communication device based on locating performed by the other mobile communications device at predetermined intervals, at least in part, on data received by the other mobile communications device from a server via a wireless network that indicates the location of the mobile communications device is up to date, the data includes coordinates of the mobile communications device, and the locating includes computing a relative location of the mobile communications device to the other mobile communications device using the data and coordinates of the other mobile communications device; and

displaying an indication of the direction from which the communication of the content was received by the mobile communications device.

8. A method as described in claim 7, wherein the gesture is indicative of the relative direction from a current orientation of the other mobile communications device.

9. A method as described in claim 7, wherein the relative direction corresponds to one of a plurality of edges of a touchscreen of the mobile communications device.

10. A method as described in claim 7, wherein the gesture is a drag or flick.

11. A method comprising:

detecting a change in location of a mobile communications device;

forming a communication having location information to be sent to another mobile communications device at predetermined intervals, the location information describing the change in the location based at least in part on data received from a server via a wireless network that indicates the location of the mobile communications device is up to date, the data includes coordinates of the mobile communications device; and

receiving the communication of content at the mobile communication device from the other mobile communication device, the content communicated by the other mobile communications device responsive to recognition of a gesture that is indicative of a direction based on the location information by computing a relative location of the mobile communications device to the other mobile communications device using the data and coordinates of the other mobile communications device and a selection of the content displayed on a touchscreen of the other mobile communication device.

12. A method as described in claim 11, wherein the gesture is indicative of the relative direction from a current orientation of the other mobile communications device.

13. A method as described in claim 11, wherein the relative direction corresponds to one of a plurality of edges of the touchscreen.

14. A method as described in claim 11, wherein the gesture is a drag or flick.