View navigation guidance system for hand held devices with display

• US 8,675,019 B1
• Filed: 12/03/2010
• Issued: 03/18/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 12/03/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Innoventions Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Innoventions Incorporated
• Inventors: Feinstein, David Y.
• Primary Examiner(s): Yang, Ryan R
• Application Number:
  US12/959,367
• Time in Patent Office: 1,201 Days
• Field of Search: 345/7
• US Class Current: 345/634
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04815 Interaction with a metaphor-based environment or interaction object displayed as three-dimensional, e.g. changing the user viewpoint with respect to the environment or object
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04845 for image manipulation, e.g. dragging, rotation, expansion or change of colour
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04847 Interaction techniques to control parameter settings, e.g. interaction with sliders or dials
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0485 Scrolling or panning
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04855 Interaction with scrollbars
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0486 Drag-and-drop
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04883 for inputting data by handwriting, e.g. gesture or text
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 11/001 Texturing; Colouring; Generation of texture or colour inpainting G06T5/77
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 11/60 Editing figures and text; Combining figures or text
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2320/0666 for control of colour parameters, e.g. colour temperature
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2320/0686 with two or more screen areas displaying information with different brightness or colours
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2340/12 Overlay of images, i.e. displayed pixel being the result of switching between the corresponding input pixels
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 5/026 Control of mixing and/or overlay of colours in general G09G5/022 and G09G5/024 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 5/377 for mixing or overlaying two or more graphic patterns G09G5/02, G09G5/397 take precedence

Abstract

System and method for view navigation guidance system for a physical display that is smaller than the virtual display it needs to display. Guidance map placed in a heads-up display layer within a small user defined area of the physical display provides an instantaneous indication of the current position of the screen view with minimal obstruction of the contents information. Color selection for the guidance map is automatically determined based on the background color in the main display layer beneath the map. The guidance map area on a touch screen display may include tapping controls, and the position of the guidance map can be dynamically altered by the user during the view navigation to control the navigation parameters.

Claims

1. A method of color synthesis for rendering geometrical shapes in a partially transparent heads-up display layer over a main display layer with changing contents, comprising the steps of:

(a) dividing said geometrical shapes into a plurality of sub-sections, each sub-section will be colored by a local painting color;

(b) assigning a local background area of predefined size and shape on the main display layer directly under each said sub-section, said local background area bounds said sub-section, and associating said local background area with said sub-section;

(c) determining a representative local background color for each said local background area;

(d) synthesizing a local sub-section painting color for each sub-section by applying a direct color transformation on said representative local background color of said associated background area, wherein said direct color transformation is exclusively dependent on said representative local background color, and wherein said transformation achieves a desired level of contrast between said heads up display layer and said main display layer; and

(e) rendering said geometrical shapes in said partially transparent heads-up display layer using said synthesized local sub-section painting colors wherein all original colors of changing contents of said main display are preserved.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein step (c) determines said local background color of said predefined local background area by averaging the primary colors values of each pixel of said local background area.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein step (c) determines said representative local background color of said predefined local background area by selecting the dominant color within said predefined local background area.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the direct color transformation of said representative global background color for each sub-section is computed by decomposing said global background color into its primary color values and adjusting the primary colors values in accordance with user setup preferences.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the direct color transformation of said representative global background color for each sub-section is computed by a stored color association table, said color association table correlates background colors to painting colors that meet a predefined contrast.

6. A method of selecting a primary color to paint geometrical shapes in a partially transparent heads-up display layer over a main display layer with changing contents, so that the visual and perceptual obstruction of the contents of said main display layer caused by said geometrical shapes is minimized, comprising the steps of:

(a) determining a minimal background area comprising the portion of said main display layer that is directly underneath said geometrical shapes so that said background area bounds all said geometrical shapes;

(b) determining primary colors values for a global background color for said background area based on color distribution of all the pixels of said background area multiplied by perception weight values; and

(c) synthesizing said primary painting color that is exclusively dependent on said primary colors values of said global background color using a direct color transformation of said primary colors values.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the direct color transformation of said global background color is computed by a stored color association table, said color association table correlates a set of background colors to painting colors that meet a predefined contrast and visibility parameters set by user setup preferences.

8. The method of claim 6, further comprising the selection of a plurality of additional secondary painting colors directly transformed from primary colors values of said global background color, said secondary colors are used to paint individual shapes selected from said geometrical shapes so that they are distinguished from other shapes painted by said primary painting color.

9. A view navigation guidance system for a hand-held device, comprising:

a processor;

a physical display having a screen view coupled to the processor;

a virtual display with contents information which is able to be partially displayed on said screen view, said virtual display is larger than said screen view;

a view navigation means which a human operator can use to control which part of said virtual display is shown on said screen view;

a storage device coupled to said processor for storing executable code to interface with said physical display and said view navigation means, the executable code comprising;

(a) code for navigating said screen view over said virtual display, responsive to said operator'"'"'s commands;

(b) code for rendering a guidance map at a predefined location on a graphical layer, said guidance map comprising two rectangles, first rectangle represents the size and form of said virtual display reduced by a computed scale factor to fit said first rectangle into a predetermined size on said screen view, second rectangle represents the size and form of said screen view reduced by said computed scale factor, said second rectangle is enclosed within said first rectangle at the proportional position of said screen view within said virtual display;

(c) code for displaying said graphic layer with said guidance map as a partially transparent heads-up display on said screen view at a predefined map location;

(d) code for storing and retrieving a record of the horizontal and vertical coordinates of the location of said guidance map on said screen view; and

(e) code for enabling the user to move said guidance map anywhere on said physical screen and simultaneously updating said predefined map location with said record of guidance map location,

whereby said guidance map assists said operator to direct the navigation of said screen view over said virtual display with minimal obstruction of the contents.

10. The view navigation guidance system of claim 9 wherein said executable code further comprising:

code to turn on said guidance map during view navigation and to turn off said guidance map when the view navigation ends.

11. The view navigation guidance system of claim 10 wherein said guidance map is turned off after a predetermined time period after the end of said view navigation.

12. The view navigation guidance system of claim 9 wherein only the corners of said first rectangle are rendered in said guidance map whereby said guidance map creates minimal obstruction of the contents information shown in said screen view.

13. The view navigation guidance system of claim 9 wherein said code to display said guidance map as heads up display over said contents information further comprising an alpha transparency value, said alpha transparency value of said heads-up display is adjusted dynamically to cause a desired contrasting effect to the continuous changing contents of the local background.

14. The view navigation guidance system of claim 9 wherein said code to display said guidance map as heads-up display over said contents information further comprising:

code to determine the dominant background color in the area of said contents information appearing under said guidance map and selecting global colors for said guidance map that will cause a predefined contrasting effect to the contents background.

15. The view navigation guidance system of claim 9 wherein said code to render said guidance map as heads up display over said contents information further comprising:

code to divide said first rectangle and said second rectangle into a plurality of sub-sections;

code to determine a representative local background color of said contents information appearing under each sub-section of said guidance map; and

code to synthesize a painting color for each sub-section of said guidance map by applying a direct color transformation on said representative local background color, wherein said direct color transformation is exclusively dependent on said representative local background color, and wherein said synthesized painting color will cause a predefined contrasting effect compared to said local background.

16. The view navigation guidance system of claim 15 wherein the code to synthesize local painting color of each sub-section of said guidance map further comprises a stored table of color values that are mapped to plurality of local background colors with different values of contrast, said table is accessed to determine the color value to paint each sub-section of said guidance map to achieve said predefined contrasting effect compared to said local background.

17. The view navigation guidance system of claim 15 wherein the code to apply said direct color transformation of said representative global background color is computed by decomposing said global background color into its primary color values and adjusting the primary colors values in accordance with user setup preferences.

18. The view navigation guidance system of claim 15 wherein said physical display further comprises touch interface, and wherein said human operator changes said location of said guidance map by finger gestures on said physical display.

19. The view navigation guidance system of claim 9 wherein the operation of said view navigation means depends on at least one user controlled auxiliary parameter, and wherein said executable code further comprising code for a user selected auxiliary control mode, said auxiliary control code further comprising:

code to record initial location of said guidance map from said record of coordinates when said auxiliary control mode is activated;

code to continuously retrieve said record of coordinates and measure changes of the current map location from its said initial location along a predefined path; and

code to change said auxiliary parameter in accordance with said changes of current map location.

20. The view navigation guidance system of claim 9 wherein said physical display further comprises touch interface, and wherein said guidance map is enclosed within a predefined touch area that will create a control signal responsive to taps made by the operator at said predefined touch area, whereby said process may use said control signal to activate a predefined function.