Glyph entry on computing device

• US 8,819,597 B2
• Filed: 04/10/2009
• Issued: 08/26/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 04/10/2009
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Google Inc. (Alphabet Inc.)
• Inventors: Li, Yang
• Primary Examiner(s): ULRICH, NICHOLAS S
• Application Number:
  US12/422,185
• Publication Number:
  US 20100262905A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,964 Days
• Field of Search: 715/702, 715/863, 715/864, 715/784, 715/830, 715/268, 382/187
• US Class Current: 715/863
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0482 Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0485 Scrolling or panning
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04883 for inputting data by handwriting, e.g. gesture or text

Abstract

A computer-implemented user interface method is disclosed. The method includes displaying on a touchscreen of a computing device a first sub-portion of a list of items, receiving from a user of the device an drawn input on the touchscreen, correlating the drawn input to an alphanumeric character, and automatically displaying a second sub-portion of the list having one or more entries whose first character correlates to the alphanumeric character.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented user interface method, comprising:

displaying, within a region of a touchscreen of a computing device, a first sub-portion of a list of items;

receiving, from a user of the computing device, a drawn input within the region of the touchscreen, wherein at least some of the drawn input is received while the first sub-portion of the list of items is displayed within the region of the touchscreen;

determining whether the drawn input comprises a scrolling input for the list of items or an entry of a glyph;

determining that the drawn input corresponds to a particular glyph assigned to a particular item in the list of items; and

in response to determining that the drawn input corresponds to the particular glyph, automatically displaying, within the region of the touchscreen, a second sub-portion of the list comprising the particular item to which the particular glyph is assigned.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving the drawn input on the touchscreen comprises receiving the drawn input on top of the sub-portion of the list of items.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising providing to the user a visual or audible failure indicator if the drawn input is not recognized.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the failure indicator comprises displaying the drawn input in a color that contrasts with a color in which the drawn input was previously displayed.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the drawn input is defined by a pointer contact with the touchscreen followed by a pointer release from the touchscreen, and a pointer path traced on the touchscreen between the pointer contact and the pointer release.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein determining whether the user-drawn glyph comprises a scrolling input or an entry of a glyph comprises identifying a bounding box for an entry of a portion of the user-drawn glyph.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein one or more items in the second sub-portion was correlated to the glyph by a user of the computing device.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the one or more items in the second sub-portion was correlated to the glyph by the user drawing the glyph and sending a confirmation to assign the glyph to the one or more items.

9. The method of claim 7, wherein the one or more items in the second sub-portion was correlated to the glyph by the user drawing the glyph and selecting the one or more items to link to the glyph.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein one or more items in the second sub-portion was correlated to the glyph by a third party software developer.

11. An article tangibly embodied in a non-transitory computer-readable data storage medium storing program code operable to cause one or more machines to perform operations, the operations comprising:

displaying, within a region of a touchscreen of a computing device, a first sub-portion of a list of items;

receiving, from a user of the computing device, a drawn input within the region of the touchscreen, wherein at least some of the drawn input is received while the first sub-portion of the list of items is displayed within the region of the touchscreen;

determining whether the drawn input comprises a scrolling input for the list of items or an entry of a glyph;

determining that the drawn input corresponds to a particular glyph assigned to a particular item in the list of items; and

in response to determining that the drawn input corresponds to the particular glyph, automatically displaying, within the region of the touchscreen, a second sub-portion of the list comprising the particular item to which the particular glyph is assigned.

12. The article of claim 11, wherein the drawn input is defined by a pointer contact with the touchscreen followed by a pointer release from the touchscreen, and a pointer path traced on the touchscreen between the pointer contact and the pointer release.

13. The article of claim 11, wherein determining whether the user-drawn glyph comprises a scrolling input or an entry of a glyph comprises identifying a bounding box for an entry of a portion of the user-drawn glyph.

14. A computer-implemented user interface system, comprising:

a graphical display and one or more associated processors and stored instructions configured to;

display content, including content associated with characters or symbols, within a region of the graphical display across an area on which varying visible graphics are capable of being displayed, and

receive a user-drawn glyph within the region of the graphical display;

a glyph interpreter programmed to;

receive the user-drawn glyph,

determine whether the user-drawn glyph comprises a scrolling input or an entry of a glyph, and

determine that the drawn input corresponds to a particular glyph assigned to a particular item in the list of items; and

a drawn user input controller programmed to display on the graphical display, in response to determining that the drawn input corresponds to the particular glyph, within the region of the graphical display, a sub-portion of the list comprising the particular item to which the particular glyph is assigned.

15. The system of claim 14, wherein the sub-portion comprises one or more entries in the list, wherein the one or more entries begin a letter that corresponds with the particular glyph.

16. The system of claim 14, wherein the drawn user input controller is further programmed to receive a drawn glyph from a user and to cause a correlation to be formed between the drawn glyph and an object identified by the user so that future user entry of the drawn glyph causes the object identified by the user to be addressed by the system.

17. The system of claim 14, wherein the drawn user input controller is programmed to identify drawn input that is received over an active application, without a visible input area, on the graphical display.

18. The system of claim 14, wherein determining whether the user-drawn glyph comprises a scrolling input or an entry of a glyph comprises identifying a bounding box for an entry of a portion of the glyph.

19. A computer-implemented user interface system, comprising:

a graphical display and one or more associated processors and stored instructions configured to;

display content, including content associated with characters or symbols, within a region of the graphical display across an area on which varying visible graphics are capable of being displayed, and

receive a user-drawn glyph within the region of the graphical display;

a glyph interpreter programmed to;

receive the user-drawn glyph,

determine whether the user-drawn glyph comprises a scrolling input or an entry of a glyph, and

determine that the drawn input corresponds to a particular glyph assigned to a particular item in the list of items; and

means for displaying, in response to determining that the drawn input corresponds to the particular glyph, within the region of the graphical display a sub-portion of the list comprising the particular item to which the particular glyph is assigned.

20. The system of claim 19, wherein determining whether the user-drawn glyph comprises a scrolling input or an entry of a glyph comprises identifying a bounding box for an entry of a portion of the glyph.