Relative touch user interface enhancements

• US 8,933,888 B2
• Filed: 06/06/2012
• Issued: 01/13/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 03/17/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Intellitact LLC
• Original Assignee: Intellitact LLC
• Inventors: Laubach, Kevin
• Primary Examiner(s): Tzeng, Fred
• Application Number:
  US13/490,113
• Publication Number:
  US 20120242581A1
• Time in Patent Office: 951 Days
• Field of Search: 345/168, 345/169, 345/173, 345/660, 345/661
• US Class Current: 345/168
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04104 Multi-touch detection in digitiser, i.e. details about the simultaneous detection of a plurality of touching locations, e.g. multiple fingers or pen and finger
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0213 Arrangements providing an integrated pointing device in a keyboard, e.g. trackball, mini-joystick for pointing devices integrated in a laptop computer G06F1/169; joysticks G05G9/047; constructional details of pointing devices G06F3/033
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/03547 Touch pads, in which fingers can move on a surface
• 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 3/0482 Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04842 Selection of displayed objects or displayed text elements G06F3/0482 takes precedence
• 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 3/04895 Guidance during keyboard input operation, e.g. prompting

Abstract

Some embodiments provide a meta touch interface (MTI) with multiple position indicators with each position indicator operating as a separate pointing tool that can be activated (i) using taps on a touchpad or other touch sensitive surface or (ii) by pressing certain keyboard keys. The MT pointer allows for adjacent UI elements to be selected without having to reposition the MT pointer for each selection or activation. Some embodiments provide a multi-device UI that comprises at least two UIs, wherein the first UI is presented on an essentially horizontal plane that is aligned with operational focus and the second UI that is presented on an essentially vertical plane that is aligned with visual focus of the user. Some embodiments provide a precision pointer that includes an adjustable magnified region to better present underlying on-screen content, thereby allowing the user to more precisely position the pointer.

Claims

1. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium with a computer program stored thereon, wherein said computer program instructs a microprocessor to perform a set of instructions for:

presenting an on-screen pointer in a graphical user interface (GUI) comprising an adjustable magnified region;

moving said on-screen pointer across the GUI to follow a user touch while magnifying a region of the GUI that falls within the adjustable magnified region of the on-screen pointer as the on-screen pointer traverses the GUI, wherein the user touch is applied to at least one touch sensitive input device;

increasing magnification of the adjustable magnified region of the on-screen pointer to enlarge a view of the region of the GUI that falls within the adjustable magnified region based on a first expansion gesture that is performed by increasing a distance separating two touches on the touch sensitive input device; and

decreasing magnification of the adjustable magnified region of the on-screen pointer to reduce a view of the region of the GUI that falls within the adjustable magnified region based on a second contraction gesture that is performed by reducing a distance separating two touches on the touch sensitive input device.

2. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 1, wherein the set of instructions for presenting the on-screen pointer comprises a set of instructions for presenting the on-screen pointer in response to a third touch gesture comprising a touch and hold of first and second fingers in a defined configuration.

3. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 1, wherein the computer program further comprises a set of instructions for selecting accessible content of the GUI that falls within the adjustable magnified region based on a third gesture comprising a hold of one of first and second touches while tapping the other of the first and second touches.

4. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 1, wherein the computer program further comprises a set of instructions for manipulating a user interface (UI) element of the GUI that falls within the adjustable magnified region based on a third gesture comprising a hold of one of first and second touches while tapping the other of the first and second touches.

5. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 1, wherein the computer program further comprises a set of instructions for presenting a visual identifier within the adjustable magnified region to identify content that has become selectable at a position of the pointer.

6. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 1, wherein the adjustable magnified region comprises a circular region in which underlying content of the GUI is magnified relative to content of the GUI that is outside the circular region.