Gesture input on a portable electronic device and method of controlling the same

• US 8,730,188 B2
• Filed: 12/23/2010
• Issued: 05/20/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 12/23/2010
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Blackberry Limited
• Original Assignee: Blackberry Limited
• Inventors: Pasquero, Jerome, Legg, Daniel James, Stonehouse, Noel John Orland, Griffin, Jason Tyler, Loney, Eric Phillip
• Primary Examiner(s): Yang, Kwang-Su
• Application Number:
  US12/977,978
• Publication Number:
  US 20120162092A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,244 Days
• Field of Search: 345/156, 345/173
• US Class Current: 345/173
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0236 using selection techniques to select from displayed items
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0237 using prediction or retrieval techniques
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0482 Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04883 for inputting data by handwriting, e.g. gesture or text

Abstract

A method of controlling an electronic device, including a touch-sensitive display, includes detecting a gesture associated with a gesture character entry mode and determining a direction of the gesture on the touch-sensitive display, determining ones of a plurality of characters associated with the gesture based on the direction, and adding the ones of the plurality of characters to candidate character strings.

Claims

1. A method of controlling an electronic device including a touch-sensitive display, the method comprising:

displaying, on the touch-sensitive display, a keyboard including a plurality of keys associated with characters, wherein each of the keys of the keyboard is associated with a respective one of the characters and said each of the keys of the keyboard includes an indicator to indicate a direction associated with the respective one of the characters;

simultaneously displaying the indicators associated with said each of the keys of the keyboard in a gesture character entry mode;

detecting a gesture associated with the gesture character entry mode and determining a direction of the gesture on the touch-sensitive display;

determining ones of the characters associated with the gesture based on the direction; and

adding the ones of the characters to candidate character strings.

2. The method according to claim 1, comprising:

identifying, from stored data, objects that at least partially match the candidate character strings; and

displaying at least one of the objects on the touch-sensitive display.

3. The method according to claim 1, comprising detecting a touch and entering the gesture character entry mode based on attributes of the touch, prior to detecting the gesture.

4. The method according to claim 3, wherein the attributes of the touch comprise a duration of the touch.

5. The method according to claim 3, comprising displaying a gesture character entry mode indicator in response to entering the gesture character entry mode.

6. The method according to claim 5, wherein the gesture character entry mode indicator comprises a polygon displayed at a location of the touch.

7. The method according to claim 6, wherein the gesture associated with the gesture character entry mode comprises a gesture having an origin located within the polygon.

8. The method according to claim 1, wherein the gesture comprises a gesture that has an origin point that is not associated with the keyboard.

9. The method according to claim 1, wherein the direction of the gesture is matched to one of a plurality of character directions.

10. The method according to claim 9, wherein the characters are associated with ones of the plurality of character directions.

11. The method according to claim 1, comprising:

identifying, from stored data, objects that at least partially match the candidate character strings;

and displaying a first plurality of the objects on the touch-sensitive display.

12. The method according to claim 11, comprising selecting one of the first plurality of the objects in response to detecting a touch at a location associated with the one of the first plurality of objects.

13. The method according to claim 11, comprising displaying a next plurality of the objects in response to receipt of an input to display further objects.

14. The method according to claim 13, wherein the input to display further objects comprises a gesture associated with the first plurality of the objects.

15. The method according to claim 1, comprising exiting the gesture character entry mode in response to receipt of a touch that is not associated with the gesture character entry mode.

16. The method according to claim 1, comprising associating at least one character with a direction that is different from a previous direction associated with the at least one character.

17. The method according to claim 1, comprising changing associated directions for character selection after detecting the gesture.

18. A computer-readable storage device having a computer-readable code executable by at least one processor of the portable electronic device to perform the method of claim 1.

19. The electronic device comprising:

the touch-sensitive display;

a memory; and

a processor coupled to the touch-sensitive display and the memory to execute a program stored in the memory to carry out the method according to claim 1.