Information processing apparatus and input control method

• US 8,446,382 B2
• Filed: 12/03/2010
• Issued: 05/21/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 06/04/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: FCNT LLC
• Original Assignee: Fujitsu Limited
• Inventors: Goto, Masayuki, Hosoi, Makoto, Takamatsuya, Yoshihiro, Yamada, Shigefumi
• Primary Examiner(s): DINH, DUC Q
• Application Number:
  US12/926,689
• Publication Number:
  US 20110074721A1
• Time in Patent Office: 900 Days
• Field of Search: 345/156, 345173-181
• US Class Current: 345/173
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/0338 Fingerprint track pad, i.e. fingerprint sensor used as pointing device tracking the fingertip image
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/03547 Touch pads, in which fingers can move on a surface
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/038 Control and interface arrangements therefor, e.g. drivers or device-embedded control circuitry
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/233 including a pointing device, e.g. roller key, track ball, rocker switch or joystick constructional details of pointing devices per se G06F3/033
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/236 including keys on side or rear faces
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/12 including a sensor for measuring a physical value, e.g. temperature or motion telephones including GPS signal receivers H04M2250/10

Abstract

An information processing apparatus includes a fingerprint sensor that detects movement of a finger, and a transforming unit that transforms the movement of the finger detected by the fingerprint sensor into an input event corresponding to an operational instruction to an application that runs on the information processing apparatus. When an amount of movement of the finger detected by the fingerprint sensor is greater than a threshold for the amount of movement, the transforming unit inhibits transformation of the movement of the finger detected by the fingerprint sensor into the input event.

Claims

1. An information processing apparatus comprising:

a fingerprint sensor that detects movement of a finger; and

a transforming unit that transforms the movement of the finger detected by the fingerprint sensor into an input event corresponding to an operational instruction to an application that runs on the information processing apparatus, wherein

when an amount of movement of the finger detected by the fingerprint sensor is greater than a threshold for the amount of movement, the transforming unit inhibits transformation of the movement of the finger detected by the fingerprint sensor into the input event and when the fingerprint sensor detects change in a moving direction of the finger and the amount of movement of the finger detected by the fingerprint sensor is greater than a second threshold for the amount of movement, the transforming unit inhibits the transformation of the movement of the finger detected by the fingerprint sensor into the input event.

2. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

the transforming unit counts number of times of inhibiting the transformation of the movement of the finger detected by the fingerprint sensor into the input event, and when the number of times exceeds a threshold for the number of times, the transforming unit inhibits the transformation of the movement of the finger detected by the fingerprint sensor into the input event until a predetermined operation is detected.

3. An input control method implemented by an information processing apparatus, the input control method comprising:

detecting, by a fingerprint sensor, movement of a finger; and

transforming the movement of the finger detected at the detecting into an input event corresponding to an operational instruction to an application that runs on the information processing apparatus, wherein

the transforming includes, when an amount of movement of the finger detected by the fingerprint sensor is greater than a threshold for the amount of movement, inhibiting transformation of the movement of the finger detected by the fingerprint sensor into the input event and when the fingerprint sensor detects change in a moving direction of the finger and the amount of movement of the finger detected by the fingerprint sensor is greater than a second threshold for the amount of movement, inhibiting the transformation of the movement of the finger detected by the fingerprint sensor into the input event.

4. The input control method according to claim 3, wherein

the transforming includes counting number of times of inhibiting the transformation of the movement of the finger detected by the fingerprint sensor into the input event, and when the number of times exceeds a threshold for the number of times, inhibiting the transformation of the movement of the finger detected by the fingerprint sensor into the input event until a predetermined operation is detected.