Launched application inserted into the stack

• US 8,793,608 B2
• Filed: 09/28/2011
• Issued: 07/29/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 10/01/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Z124 LLC (Flexis)
• Original Assignee: Z124 LLC (Flexis)
• Inventors: Sirpal, Sanjiv, Reeves, Paul, de Paz, Alexander, Ficklin, Jared, Burton, Denise
• Primary Examiner(s): Nguyen, Cao Kevin
• Application Number:
  US13/247,402
• Publication Number:
  US 20120084706A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,035 Days
• Field of Search: 715/702, 715/781, 715/767, 715/789, 715/830
• US Class Current: 715/781
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/16 Constructional details or arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1616 with folding flat displays, e.g. laptop computers or notebooks having a clamshell configuration, with body parts pivoting to an open position around an axis parallel to the plane they define in closed position
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1632 External expansion units, e.g. docking stations
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1641 the display being formed by a plurality of foldable display components G06F1/1647 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1647 including at least an additional display G06F1/1692 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1677 for detecting open or closed state or particular intermediate positions assumed by movable parts of the enclosure, e.g. detection of display lid position with respect to main body in a laptop, detection of opening of the cover of battery compartment
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1694 the I/O peripheral being a single or a set of motion sensors for pointer control or gesture input obtained by sensing movements of the portable computer
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2200/1614 Image rotation following screen orientation, e.g. switching from landscape to portrait mode
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2200/1637 Sensing arrangement for detection of housing movement or orientation, e.g. for controlling scrolling or cursor movement on the display of an handheld computer
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04803 Split screen, i.e. subdividing the display area or the window area into separate subareas
• 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 3/0346 with detection of the device orientation or free movement in a 3D space, e.g. 3D mice, 6-DOF [six degrees of freedom] pointers using gyroscopes, accelerometers or tilt-sensors
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/041 Digitisers, e.g. for touch screens or touch pads, characterised by the transducing means
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0412 Digitisers structurally integrated in a display
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0416 Control or interface arrangements specially adapted for digitisers
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/044 by capacitive means
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/048 Interaction techniques based on graphical user interfaces [GUI]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0481 based on specific properties of the displayed interaction object or a metaphor-based environment, e.g. interaction with desktop elements like windows or icons, or assisted by a cursor's changing behaviour or appearance
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04812 Interaction techniques based on cursor appearance or behaviour, e.g. being affected by the presence of displayed objects
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04817 using icons graphical or visual programming using iconic symbols G06F8/34
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0482 : Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0483 : Interaction with page-structured environments, e.g. book metaphor
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0484 : for the control of specific functions or operations, e.g. selecting or manipulating an object, an image or a displayed text element, setting a parameter value or selecting a range
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04842 : Selection of displayed objects or displayed text elements G06F3/0482 takes precedence
• 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 3/0486 : Drag-and-drop
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0488 : using a touch-screen or digitiser, e.g. input of commands through traced gestures
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04883 : for inputting data by handwriting, e.g. gesture or text
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04886 : by partitioning the display area of the touch-screen or the surface of the digitising tablet into independently controllable areas, e.g. virtual keyboards or menus
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1423 : controlling a plurality of local displays, e.g. CRT and flat panel display
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1446 : display composed of modules, e.g. video walls
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 3/02 : Affine transformations for image registration G06T3/147; for image mosaicing G06T3/4038
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 3/40 : Scaling of whole images or parts thereof, e.g. expanding or contracting
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2356/00 : Detection of the display position w.r.t. other display screens
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 5/14 : Display of multiple viewports
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/1827 : Network arrangements for conference optimisation or adaptation

Abstract

A dual-screen user device and methods for revealing a combination of desktops on single and multiple screens are disclosed. Specifically, a determined number of desktops and/or running applications can be selectively displayed on dual screen displays conditioned upon inputs received and the state of the device. Desktop displays and applications can be selectively shifted between the screens by user gestures, or moved off of the screens by other user gestures and hidden. The hidden desktops and screens can be re-displayed by yet another gesture. The desktops and applications are arranged in a window stack that represents a logical order of the desktops and applications. Desktops and applications can be selectively launched and added to the window stack. The user can also select where the desktops/applications are to be inserted and where they are first to be displayed after being launched.

Claims

1. A method of displaying a plurality of desktops and/or applications, each having at least one window, on a multi-screen device, comprising:

receiving, by a processor, a first input that represents an instruction to reveal one of a desktop or application on a first display of the multi-screen device;

selecting, by the processor, a first desktop or application to display on the first display;

receiving, by the processor, a second input that represents an instruction to reveal one of a desktop or application on a second display of the multi-screen device;

selecting, by the processor, a second desktop or application to display on the second display;

displaying, by the processor, the selected first and second desktops or applications on the first and second displays;

receiving, by the processor, a third input that represents an instruction to launch yet another desktop or application on either the first or second display of the multi-screen device;

selecting, by the processor, a third desktop or application to display within a window stack including the selected first and second desktops or applications, wherein the window stack is a logical arrangement of the opened desktops and applications in an ordered group; and

selectively inserting, by the processor, the third desktop or application within the window stack resulting in at least the third desktop or application to be displayed on one of the first and second displays, and one of the first and second desktops or applications to be displayed on the other one of the first and second displays.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the first, second, and third inputs comprise at least one of the following:

(i) a user input gesture;

ii) a combination of user input gestures;

iii) a memory output;

iv) a response to a programmed condition; and

v) hardware timers.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the user input gesture comprises a tap or a long press.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the user input gesture is conducted on off-screen gesture areas of the first and second displays, wherein the off-screen gesture are receives gestures but does not provide a display.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the third desktop or application is displayed on the display from which the third desktop or application was launched, and one of the first and second desktops or applications is displayed on the other display.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the desktop or application from the first and second desktops or applications displayed on the other display is the top application in the window stack as identified prior to selecting the third desktop or application.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the first desktop or application is a parent application and the second desktop or application is a child application of the parent application, and the parent application is displayed on the other display.

8. A non-transitory computer-readable medium having stored thereon instructions that cause a computing system to execute a method, the instructions comprising:

instructions configured to receive a first input that represents an instruction to reveal a desktop or application on a first display of a multi-screen device;

instructions configured to determine, from the first input, a first desktop or application to display on the first display resulting in the first desktop or application being displayed on the first display;

instructions configured to receive a second input that represents an instruction to reveal a second desktop or application on a second display of a multi-screen device;

instructions configured to determine, from the second input, a second desktop or application to display on a second display of the multi-screen device resulting in the second desktop or application being displayed on the second display;

instructions configured to receive a third input that represents an instruction to launch a new desktop or application in addition to the first and second desktops or applications;

instructions configured to respond to the third input that causes the new desktop or application to be launched as a third desktop or application, wherein the third desktop or application is displayed on the display from which the third input was executed and said third desktop or application thereby replacing either the first or second desktop or application appearing on that display; and

instructions to insert the third desktop or application between the first desktop or application and second desktop or application in a window stack, wherein the window stack is a logical arrangement of the opened desktops and applications in an ordered group.

9. The computer-readable medium of claim 8, wherein the first display corresponds to a primary screen and wherein the second display corresponds to a secondary screen.

10. The computer-readable medium of claim 8, wherein said third desktop or application is inserted into a window stack comprising the first, second, and third desktops or applications.

11. The computer-readable medium of claim 8, wherein the first, second, and third inputs comprise at least one of the following:

i) a user input gesture;

ii) a combination of user input gestures;

iii) a memory output;

iv) a response to a programmed condition; and

v) hardware timers.

12. The computer-readable medium of claim 8, wherein a lead desktop or application from the first and second desktops or applications is displayed on the display from which the third input was not executed.

13. The computer-readable medium of claim 8, wherein the first desktop or application is a parent application and the second desktop or application is a child application of the parent application, and the parent application is displayed on the display from which the third input was not executed.

14. A multi-screen user device, comprising:

a first display including a first display area;

a second display including a second display area;

a first user input gesture area of the first display;

a second user input gesture area of the second display, wherein the first and second user input gesture areas are configured to accept input from a user;

a computer-readable medium having instructions stored thereon that include;

a first set of instructions configured to determine a number and identity of desktops or applications selected to be run by a user;

a second set of instructions configured to determine, based on the number and identity of the desktops or applications running, a window stack comprising a logical representation of the desktops and applications within an ordered group whereby a user can selectively move a selected desktop or application within the window stack;

a third set of instructions responsive to gestures made by the user to launch a new desktop or application wherein the new desktop application is inserted within and added to the window stack and wherein the new desktop or application is inserted between two desktops or applications already present in the window stack; and

a fourth set of instructions responsive to gestures made by the user to display the new desktop or application on the display from which the gestures were made, the new desktop or application thereby replacing either the first or second desktop or application appearing on that display.

15. The device of claim 14, wherein the first display corresponds to a primary screen and wherein the second display corresponds to a secondary screen.

16. The device of claim 14, wherein said third desktop or application is inserted into a window stack comprising the first, second, and third desktops or applications.

17. The device of claim 14, wherein the first, second, and third inputs comprise at least one of the following:

i) a user input gesture;

ii) a combination of user input gestures;

iii) a memory output;

(iv) a response to a programmed condition; and

v) hardware timers.

18. The device of claim 14, wherein a lead desktop or application from the first and second desktops or applications is displayed on the display from which the gestures were not made.

19. The device of claim 14, wherein the first desktop or application is a parent application and the second desktop or application is a child application of the parent application, and the parent application is displayed on the display from which the gestures were not made.

20. The device of claim 14, wherein the displayed desktops or applications can be further changed by execution of another user gesture in which at least one of the first, second, or third desktops or applications becomes non-visible.