Moving object on rendered display using collar

• US 8,863,027 B2
• Filed: 07/31/2011
• Issued: 10/14/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 07/31/2011
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: AirBNB Incorporated
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Lection, David B., Molander, Mark E.
• Primary Examiner(s): Pesin, Boris
• Assistant Examiner(s): HUERTAS TORRES, AYESHA E
• Application Number:
  US13/194,984
• Publication Number:
  US 20130027318A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,171 Days
• US Class Current: 715/799
• 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 3/04842 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 3/0486 Drag-and-drop
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04883 for inputting data by handwriting, e.g. gesture or text

Abstract

In response to receiving a first user action in relation to an object displayed on the rendered display, a collar is displayed on the rendered display around the object. The collar and the object can be made translucent. The collar can have the same shape as the object, but can be larger in size than the object. In response to receiving a second user action in relation to the collar, the object and the collar are moved on the rendered display in correspondence with the second user action, without finalizing a current location of the object on the rendered display after the second user action has been completed. In response to receiving a third user action, the current location of the object is finalized on the rendered display and the collar is removed from around the object on the rendered display.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

in response to receiving a first user action in relation to an object displayed on a touchscreen, displaying a collar around the object on the touchscreen, by a processor;

in response to receiving a second user action within any region of an area bounded by and including the collar, moving the object and the collar on the touchscreen in correspondence with the second user action, by the processor, without finalizing a current location of the object on the touchscreen after the second user action has been completed;

in response to receiving a third user action, finalizing the current location of the object on the touchscreen and removing the collar from around the object on the touchscreen, by the processor; and

recording an area of the touchscreen that is actuated during each of a plurality of fourth user actions prior to the first user action being performed,

wherein the collar has a size in correspondence with an average of a current area of the touchscreen that has been actuated by the first user action and the areas that were actuated during each of the fourth user actions prior to the first user action being performed.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the first user action and the third user action are each a tap action performed by a user on the touchscreen,

and wherein the second user action is a touch and drag action performed by the user on the touchscreen in relation to the object.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the collar has a displayed size in correspondence with an area of the touchscreen that was actuated by the first user action.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the second user action is one of a plurality of second user actions, such that after each second user action, a user is not touching the touchscreen, and the current location of the object on the touchscreen is not finalized after each second user action is performed until the third user action has been received.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the collar has a same shape as the object but is larger in size than the object, the collar having a same center point as the object.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the collar comprises one or more of:

an accentuated center point that is a same center point as the object;

a set of cross hairs extending radially from the center point; and

status information regarding the object.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

in response to receiving the first user action,

storing a current translucency of the object as a saved translucency, by the processor; and

,

increasing the current translucency of the object, by the processor, such that a background displayed on the touchscreen behind the object is more visible through the object than with the saved translucency of the object, where the collar is also translucent such that the background displayed on the touchscreen behind the collar is visible through the collar; and

,

in response to receiving the third user action,

decreasing the current translucency of the object to the saved translucency that was previously stored, by the processor.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

in response to receiving the first user action,

displaying a path on the touchscreen, by the processor, the path indicating where the object is permitted to be moved;

in response to receiving the third user action,

removing the path from around the object on the touchscreen, by the processor,

where moving the object and the collar on the touchscreen in correspondence with the second user action is further in correspondence with the path.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the object has a legal area in which the object is permitted to be moved on the touchscreen,

wherein moving the object and the collar on the touchscreen in correspondence with the second user action is such that when the object reaches a boundary of the legal area, the object cannot be moved past the boundary but the collar is still displayed around the object on the touchscreen such that the collar extends past the boundary of the legal area.

10. A non-transitory storage device storing computer-readable code executable by a processor and comprising:

first computer-readable code to display a collar around an object displayed on a touchscreen, responsive to a first user action on the touchscreen in relation to the object;

second computer-readable code to move the object and the collar on the touchscreen in correspondence with a second user action within any region of an area bounded by and including the collar, without finalizing a current location of the object on the touchscreen after the second user action has been completed; and

, third computer-readable code to finalize the current location of the object on the touchscreen and remove the collar from around the object on the touchscreen, responsive to a third user action on the touchscreen; and

fourth computer-readable code to record an area of the touchscreen that is actuated during each of a plurality of fourth user actions prior to the first user action being performed, wherein the collar has a size in correspondence with an average of a current area of the touchscreen that has been actuated by the first user action and the areas that were actuated during each of the fourth user actions prior to the first user action being performed.

11. The non-transitory device of claim 10, wherein the collar has a size in correspondence with at least an area of the touchscreen that was actuated by the first user action.

12. The non-transitory storage device of claim 10, wherein the second user action is one of a plurality of second user actions, such that after each second user action, a user is not touching the touchscreen, and the current location of the object on the touchscreen is not finalized after each second user action is performed until the third user action has been received.

13. The non-transitory storage device of claim 10, wherein the collar has a same shape as the object but is larger in size than the object, the collar having a same center point as the object.

14. The non-transitory storage device of claim 10, wherein the collar comprises one or more of:

an accentuated center point that is a same center point as the object;

a set of cross hairs extending radially from the center point; and

status information regarding the object.

15. The non-transitory storage device of claim 10, wherein the first computer-readable code is further to store a current translucency of the object as a saved translucency, and to increase the current translucency of the object, where the collar is also translucent, and wherein the third computer-readable code is further to decrease the current translucency of the object to the saved translucency that was previously stored.

16. The non-transitory storage device of claim 10, wherein the first computer-readable code is further to display a path on the touchscreen indicating where the object is permitted to be moved, wherein the second computer-readable code is to move the object and the collar on the touchscreen both in correspondence with the second user action and in correspondence with the path, and wherein the third computer-readable code is further to remove the path from around the object on the touchscreen.

17. The non-transitory storage device of claim 10, wherein the object has a legal area in which the object is permitted to be moved on the touchscreen, and wherein the second computer-readable code is to move the object and the collar on the touchscreen in correspondence with the second user action such that when the object reaches a boundary of the legal area, the object cannot be moved past the boundary but the collar is still displayed around the object on the touchscreen such that the collar extends past the boundary of the legal area.

18. A system comprising:

a touchscreen device providing a display and receptive to user input;

a processor; and

,

a computer-readable data storage medium to store a computer program executable by the processor to;

display a collar around an object displayed on the display responsive to first user input on the display in relation to the object;

move the object and the collar on the display in correspondence with second user input within any region of an area bounded by and including the collar, without finalizing a current location of the object on the display after the second user input has been completed;

finalize the current location of the object on the display and remove the collar from around the object on the display, responsive to third user input in relation to the collar; and

record an area of the touchscreen that is actuated during each of a plurality of fourth user actions prior to the first user action being performed,

wherein the collar has a size in correspondence with an average of a current area of the touchscreen that has been actuated by the first user action and the areas that were actuated during each of the fourth user actions prior to the first user action being performed.