User interface for interactive digital television

• US 8,601,510 B2
• Filed: 10/21/2010
• Issued: 12/03/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 10/21/2009
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Westinghouse Digital LLC (Brookfield Asset Management Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Westinghouse Digital LLC (Brookfield Asset Management Incorporated)
• Inventors: Araki, John, Randall, Kenneth M., Libor, Klaus, Moore, Arthur B.
• Primary Examiner(s): SHANG, ANNAN Q
• Application Number:
  US12/909,118
• Publication Number:
  US 20110093889A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,139 Days
• Field of Search: 725 37- 61, 709217-232, 348/734
• US Class Current: 725/41
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 13/6461 Means for preventing cross-talk
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 13/6463 using twisted pairs of wires
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 13/6466 on substrates, e.g. printed circuit boards [PCB]
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 13/6469 on substrates
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 13/6658 on printed circuit board H01R13/6666 - H01R13/6691 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 13/719 specially adapted for high frequency, e.g. with filters
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 24/64 for high frequency, e.g. RJ 45
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/42204 User interfaces specially adapted for controlling a client device through a remote control device; Remote control devices therefor constructive details of casings for the remote control device H01H9/0235; user interfaces for controlling a tuning device of a television receiver through a remote control H03J9/00; remote control of peripheral devices connected to a television receiver through the remote control device of the television receiver H04B1/205
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4312 involving specific graphical features, e.g. screen layout, special fonts or colors, blinking icons, highlights or animations
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4314 for fitting data in a restricted space on the screen, e.g. EPG data in a rectangular grid
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47 End-user applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4725 using interactive regions of the image, e.g. hot spots details of information retrieval from the Internet by using URLs G06F16/955; processing chained hypermedia data for information retrieval G06F16/94
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/478 Supplemental services, e.g. displaying phone caller identification, shopping application
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4858 for modifying screen layout parameters, e.g. fonts, size of the windows

Abstract

A method of controlling an interactive television includes displaying a layout on the interactive television that includes one or more visual cues to prompt a user regarding an action (click action) to be taken on an input device to activate a predetermined function (click event). The visual cues may include multiple visual cues, at least one of which is a visual cue for a cursor-based action that includes positioning a cursor with an input device, and another is a visual cue for a movement-based action that includes moving the input device.

Claims

1. A method of controlling an interactive television, the method comprising:

displaying a layout on the interactive television, wherein the layout includes one or more visual cues to prompt a user regarding a selection action (click action) to be taken on an input device to activate a predetermined function (click event) on the interactive television;

wherein the one or more visual cues includes a movement-based cue for prompting, as the selection action, a movement-based action that includes moving the input device by translation and/or rotation of the input device, with the moving of the input device activating the predetermined function.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the one or more visual cues includes at least two visual cues for performing different actions to activate the predetermined function.

3. The method of claim 2,

wherein one of the at least two visual cues is a visual cue for a cursor-based action that includes positioning a cursor using the input device;

and

wherein another of the at least two visual cues is a visual cue for a movement-based action that includes moving the input device.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the movement-based cue includes an arrow for prompting translation of the input device in the direction indicated by the arrow.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the predetermined function activated by the translation includes a zoom function that increases the size of one or more features of the layout.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the movement-based cue includes an icon for prompting back-and-forth translation of the input device.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein at least one of the visual cues includes an icon that suggests the predetermined function associated with the icon.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein at least one of the visual cues includes an icon that suggests the action associated with the icon.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein at least one of the visual cues includes an icon that suggests both the action and the predetermined function associated with the icon.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the layout is a three-dimensional layout that includes an illusion of depth into and/or out of the television, and wherein the one or more visual cues includes a depth cue.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the depth cue suggests a click event comprising movement into and/or out of the depth of the three-dimensional layout.

12. The method of claim 1, further comprising the user moving the input device to perform the movement-based action.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the user moving the input device includes the user moving the input device horizontally.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the user moving the input device horizontally includes the user moving the input device successively in opposite horizontal directions to perform the movement-based action.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the user moving the input device in opposite horizontal directions includes moving the input device successively left and right, in directions parallel to the interactive television.

16. The method of claim 14, wherein the user moving the input device in opposite horizontal directions includes moving the input device successively forward and backward, in directions toward and away from the interactive television.

17. The method of claim 12, wherein the user moving the input device includes the user moving the input device vertically.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein the user moving the input device vertically includes the user moving the input device successively up and down to perform the movement-based action.

19. A method of controlling an interactive television, the method comprising:

displaying a layout on the interactive television, wherein the layout includes one or more visual cues to prompt a user regarding an action (click action) to be taken on an input device to activate a predetermined function (click event) on the interactive television; and

wherein the layout is a three-dimensional layout that includes an illusion of depth into and/or out of the television, and wherein the one or more visual cues includes a depth cue; and

wherein the one or more visual cues includes an abrupt, distinctive increase in level of detail of an object that is displayed on the layout, to suggest to the user the action (click action) to be taken on the input device.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein the depth cue suggests a click event comprising movement into and/or out of the depth of the three-dimensional layout.

21. The method of claim 19, wherein the object prompts the user regarding the action associated with the object following the abrupt, distinctive increase of level of detail of the object.

22. The method of claim 19, wherein the predetermined function is changed from a first predetermined function to a second predetermined function at the abrupt, distinctive increase of level of detail of the object.

23. The method of claim 19, wherein the abrupt, distinctive increase of level of detail of the object comprises an abrupt transition in object size and texture.

24. The method of claim 19, wherein the abrupt, distinctive increase of level of detail of the object comprises an abrupt transition from an indistinct graphical image to a plurality of distinct graphical features.