System and method for disambiguating item selection

• US 8,812,995 B1
• Filed: 04/10/2013
• Issued: 08/19/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 04/10/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Google Inc. (Alphabet Inc.)
• Inventors: Murphy, Bruce W.
• Primary Examiner(s): LEGGETT, ANDREA C.
• Application Number:
  US13/860,384
• Time in Patent Office: 496 Days
• Field of Search: 715/810, 715/764, 715/863, 715/864
• US Class Current: 715/863
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3664 Details of the user input interface, e.g. buttons, knobs or sliders, including those provided on a touch screen; remote controllers; input using gestures
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04806 Zoom, i.e. interaction techniques or interactors for controlling the zooming operation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04842 Selection of displayed objects or displayed text elements G06F3/0482 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0488 using a touch-screen or digitiser, e.g. input of commands through traced gestures

Abstract

A software module provides multiple individually selectable items via a user interface. The software module detects a contact with an area on the user interface that includes several of the individually selectable items in a first relative arrangement. The software module determines that the contact corresponds to an attempted selection of a single item. The software module provides a disambiguation menu for selecting the single item from among the several individually selectable items within the area, and arranges the several individually selectable items in the disambiguation menu according to a second relative arrangement different from the first relative arrangement.

Claims

1. A method in a computing device for disambiguating selections of selectable items geographic markers via a user interface, the method comprising:

providing a digital map via the user interface;

providing a plurality of individually selectable geographic markers, each overlaying the digital map at a respective point corresponding to a geographic location with which the geographic marker is associated;

detecting a contact of a user with an area on the user interface in which several of the plurality of individually selectable geographic markers are provided according to a first relative arrangement;

determining that the contact corresponds to an attempted selection of a single geographic marker;

providing a disambiguation menu while the user maintains contact with the area for selecting the single geographic marker from among the several individually selectable geographic markers within the area, including arranging the several individually selectable geographic markers in the disambiguation menu according to a second relative arrangement different from the first relative arrangement; and

determining which of the several individually selectable geographic markers has been selected when the user discontinues contact with the area.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the geographic markers indicate respective results of a geographic search query.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein arranging the several individually selectable geographic markers in the disambiguation menu according to the second relative arrangement includes positioning the several individually selectable geographic markers along an arc centered approximately at the center of the area with which the contact was detected.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein positioning the several individually selectable geographic markers along the arc includes arranging the several individually selectable geographic markers from left to right in a decreasing order of at least one of (i) relevance or (ii) popularity of the corresponding geographic locations.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein arranging the several individually selectable geographic markers in the disambiguation menu further includes selectively highlighting one or more of the several individually selectable geographic markers according to at least one of (i) relevance or (ii) popularity of the corresponding geographic locations.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising ignoring user interactions with the digital map while the disambiguation menu is active.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein providing the disambiguation menu further includes provides annotating the several individually selectable geographic markers with additional text.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the user interface includes a touchscreen,

detecting the contact with the area includes detecting a long-press event.

9. A computing device comprising:

one or more processors;

a user interface; and

a computer-readable medium storing thereon instructions that, when executed on one or more processors, cause the computing device to;

display a digital map via the user interface,

display selectable geographic markers overlaid on the digital map at points corresponding to geographic locations with which the geographic markers are associated,

detect an attempted selection of one of the plurality of geographic markers via the user interface, including detect an interaction with a contact area in which the plurality of selectable geographic markers are displayed,

automatically spread the plurality of selectable geographic markers over an area on the touch interface larger than the contact area, including change a position of at least one of the plurality of selectable geographic markers relative to the other ones of the plurality of selectable geographic markers,

receive a selection of one of the plurality of selectable geographic markers via the user interface, and

after the selection is received, restore the plurality of selectable geographic markers to the points on the corresponding to the geographic locations with which the geographic markers are associated.

10. The computing device of claim 9, wherein to spread the plurality of selectable geographic markers over the larger area, the instructions further cause the computing device to:

position the plurality of selectable geographic markers along an arc centered approximately at the center of the contact area.

11. The computing device of claim 10, wherein to position the plurality of selectable geographic markers along the arc, the instructions further cause the computing device to:

arrange the plurality of selectable geographic markers from left to right in a decreasing order of at least one of (i) relevance or (ii) popularity.

12. The computing device of claim 10, wherein the instructions further cause the computing device to annotate the plurality of selectable geographic markers spread over the larger area.

13. The computing device of claim 9, wherein the user interface is a touch interface.

14. A method in a computing device having a touchscreen for disambiguating selections of markers overlaying a digital map of a geographic area, the method comprising:

causing individually selectable geographic markers to be displayed over the digital map, wherein each geographic marker is associated with a respective location within the geographic area, and wherein each geographic marker is displayed at a point on the digital map corresponding to the location with which the geographic marker is associated;

detecting an instance of user contact with the touchscreen at a contact area that includes a plurality of the displayed geographic markers;

determining that the instance of user contact indicates an attempted selection of exactly one of the plurality of geographic markers;

automatically providing, via the touchscreen, a disambiguation menu for selecting a geographic marker from among the plurality of the geographic markers included in the contact area, including;

causing a plurality of indicators corresponding to the respective ones of the plurality of geographic markers to be displayed over the digital map in an area larger than the contact area, at points different that the points at which the plurality of the geographic markers are displayed;

and the method further comprising;

receiving a selection of one of the plurality of geographic markers via the disambiguation menu.

15. The method of claim 14, further comprising ignoring user interactions with the digital map while the disambiguation menu is active.

16. The method of claim 14, wherein causing the plurality of indicators corresponding to the respective ones of the plurality of geographic markers to be displayed over the digital map in the area larger than the contact area includes:

positioning the plurality of indicators along an arc centered approximately at the center of the contact area.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein positioning the plurality of indicators along the arc includes arranging the plurality of indicators from left to right in a decreasing order of at least one of (i) relevance or (ii) popularity of the corresponding geographic locations.

18. The method of claim 14, further comprising annotating the plurality of indicators with text.

19. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing thereon a plurality of instructions that, when executed on one or more processors of a computing device having a user interface, cause the one or more processors to:

provide a plurality of individually selectable geographic markers via the user interface over a digital map, each overlaying the digital map at a respective point corresponding to a geographic location with which the geographic marker is associated;

detect an attempted selection of a target geographic marker from among the plurality of individually selectable geographic markers via the user interface, wherein the target geographic marker cannot be identified based on the attempted selection; and

provide a disambiguation menu for selecting the target geographic marker from among the plurality of individually selectable geographic markers, including;

arrange the geographic markers in the disambiguation menu according to a relative arrangement different from an original relative arrangement of the geographic markers,

receive an unambiguous selection of the target geographic marker via the disambiguation menu, and

remove the disambiguation menu upon receiving the unambiguous selection.

20. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 19, wherein the instructions further cause the one or more processors to:

subsequently to receiving the selection, arrange the geographic markers according to the original relative arrangement.

21. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 19, wherein to detect the attempted selection of the target geographic marker, the instructions cause the one or more processors to detect a contact with an area on the user interface in which the plurality of individually selectable geographic markers are provided.

22. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 21, wherein the instructions cause the one or more processors to position the individually selectable geographic markers in the disambiguation menu along an arc centered approximately at the center of the area with which the contact was detected.