Electronic device, controlling method thereof and computer program product

• US 9,041,653 B2
• Filed: 09/12/2012
• Issued: 05/26/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 07/18/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: HTC Corporation
• Original Assignee: HTC Corporation
• Inventors: Chen, Yu-Chuan, Weng, Hung-I
• Primary Examiner(s): Sasinowski, Andrew
• Application Number:
  US13/612,782
• Publication Number:
  US 20130002560A1
• Time in Patent Office: 986 Days
• 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 3/0412 Digitisers structurally integrated in a display
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0416 Control or interface arrangements specially adapted for digitisers
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0488 using a touch-screen or digitiser, e.g. input of commands through traced gestures
• 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

Abstract

A method of controlling an electronic device, an electronic device using the same, and a computer program product are provided. The method includes detecting a plurality of touch areas on a touch screen so that a plurality of touch points contained within each of the touch areas are obtained, respectively determining a typical coordinate value corresponding to each of the touch areas according to a coordinate value of each of the touch points within the touch areas, selecting one or more active objects displayed on the touch screen according to the typical coordinate value corresponding to each of the touch areas, and triggering an action associated with the one or more active objects.

Claims

1. A method of controlling an electronic device having a touch screen, comprising:

detecting a plurality of touch areas on the touch screen so that a plurality of touch points contained within each of the touch areas are obtained;

respectively determining a typical coordinate value corresponding to each of the touch areas according to a coordinate value of each of the touch points within the touch areas;

for each of the touch areas, respectively determining a weight value of each of the touch points within the touch area, wherein the weight value of any of the touch points that is within any of a specific object display area of each of one or more specific objects is determined to be higher than the weight value of those touch points that are not within the one or more specific object display areas;

selecting one or more active objects displayed on the touch screen according to the typical coordinate value corresponding to each of the touch areas; and

triggering an action associated with the one or more active objects.

2. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the step of selecting the one or more active objects displayed on the touch screen according to the typical coordinate value corresponding to each of the touch areas comprises:

obtaining a statistical pointer of the typical coordinate value corresponding to each of the touch areas;

if the statistical pointer is located in an object display area of one of one or more objects displayed on the touch screen, selecting the object that the statistical pointer is located in the object display area thereof as the active object; and

if the statistical pointer is not located in any of the object display area of each of the one or more objects displayed on the touch screen, determining an object selecting scope on the touch screen according to the typical coordinate value corresponding to each of the touch areas, and selecting one or more objects located in the object selecting scope to be the one or more active objects.

3. The method as claimed in claim 2, wherein the step of obtaining the statistical pointer of the typical coordinate value corresponding to each of the touch areas comprises:

respectively determining a weight value of each of the typical coordinate value according to a pressure of the associated touch points and/or a location of the typical coordinate value;

calculating a weighted average of the typical coordinate value corresponding to each of the touch areas by the corresponding weight value; and

regarding the weighted average as the statistical pointer.

4. The method as claimed in claim 3, wherein an object divided into a plurality of object regions is displayed on the touch screen, and the step of respectively determining the weight value of each of the typical coordinate value according to the location of the typical coordinate value comprises:

while the typical coordinate value corresponding to each of the touch areas is respectively located in one of the object regions of the object displayed on the touch screen, respectively determining the weight value of each of the typical coordinate value according to a size of the located object region, wherein the weight value of any of the typical coordinate values located in a relatively small object region is determined to be higher than the weight value of any of those the typical coordinate values that is located in a relatively large object region.

5. The method as claimed in claim 4, wherein the object regions are respectively corresponding to a plurality of interaction areas, and a size of each of the interaction areas is identical to or larger than the corresponding object region, and the step of respectively determining the weight value of each of the typical coordinate value according to the location of the typical coordinate value further comprises:

while the typical coordinate value corresponding to each of the touch areas is respectively located in one of the interaction areas of the object displayed on the touch screen, respectively determining the weight value of each of the typical coordinate value according to the size of the located object region, wherein the weight value of any of the typical coordinate values located in a relatively small object region is determined to be higher than the weight value of any of those the typical coordinate values that is located in a relatively large object region.

6. The method as claimed in claim 2, wherein the step of obtaining the statistical pointer of the typical coordinate value corresponding to each of the touch areas comprises:

calculating an average of the typical coordinate value corresponding to each of the touch areas; and

regarding the average as the statistical pointer.

7. The method as claimed in claim 2, wherein after the step of determining the object selecting scope on the touch screen according to the typical coordinate value corresponding to each of the touch areas, the method further comprises:

making the object selecting scope visible by dynamically rendering the object selecting scope on the touch screen.

8. The method as claimed in claim 2, wherein the object selecting scope is a largest rectangle that contains the typical coordinate value corresponding to each of the touch areas at any of four edges of the rectangle, or a polygon with the typical coordinate value corresponding to each of the touch areas as vertices of the polygon.

9. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the step of selecting the one or more active objects displayed on the touch screen according to the typical coordinate value corresponding to each of the touch areas comprises:

determining an object selecting scope on the touch screen according to the typical coordinate value corresponding to each of the touch areas; and

selecting one or more objects located in the object selecting scope to be the one or more active objects.

10. The method as claimed in claim 9, wherein after the step of determining the object selecting scope on the touch screen according to the typical coordinate value corresponding to each of the touch areas, the method further comprises:

making the object selecting scope visible by dynamically rendering the object selecting scope on the touch screen.

11. The method as claimed in claim 9, wherein the object selecting scope is a largest rectangle that contains the typical coordinate value corresponding to each of the touch areas at any of four edges of the rectangle, or a polygon with the typical coordinate value corresponding to each of the touch areas as vertices of the polygon.

12. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the step of respectively determining the typical coordinate value corresponding to each of the touch areas according to the coordinate value of each of the touch points within the touch areas further comprises:

calculating a weighted average; and

regarding the weighted average as the typical coordinate value.

13. The method as claimed in claim 12, wherein the weight value of any of the touch points that is not within the one or more specific object display areas is zero.

14. The method as claimed in claim 13, wherein the one or more specific objects are one or more keys on a software input panel displayed on the touch screen.

15. The method as claimed in claim 12, wherein one or more additional objects other than the one or more specific objects are displayed on the touch screen, and among the touch points that are not within the one or more specific object display areas, the weight value of any of the touch points that is within any of an additional object display area of each of the one or more additional objects is determined to be higher than the weight value of those touch points that are not within the one or more additional object display areas.

16. The method as claimed in claim 15, further comprising:

determining one or more candidate characters according to a word database and at least one input character input through a software input panel displayed on the touch screen;

regarding one or more keys on the software input panel corresponding to the one or more candidate characters as the one or more specific objects; and

regarding one or more remaining keys on the software input panel other than the one or more keys corresponding to the one or more candidate characters as the one or more additional objects.

17. The method as claimed in claim 16, further comprising:

enlarging the specific object display area of each of the one or more keys corresponding to the one or more candidate characters.

18. The method as claimed in claim 12, further comprising:

determining a primary operating area on the touch screen according to an execution sequence of software modules running on the electronic device; and

regarding one or more objects located in the primary operating area as the one or more specific objects.

19. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the step of triggering the action associated with the one or more active objects comprises:

performing the action on the one or more active objects in accordance with a movement of the touch areas.

20. The method as claimed in claim 19, wherein the action comprises rotating the one or more active objects, moving the one or more active objects, or changing shape of the one or more active objects.

21. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the touch areas are detected concurrently.

22. The method as claimed in claim 1, further comprising:

providing a visual feedback on each of the one or more active objects.

23. An electronic device, comprising:

a touch screen;

memory;

one or more processors; and

one or more instructions, wherein the one or more instructions are stored in the memory and configured to be executed by the one or more processors to;

detect a plurality of touch areas on the touch screen so that a plurality of touch points contained within each of the touch areas are obtained;

for each of the touch areas, respectively determining a weight value of each of the touch points within the touch area, wherein the weight value of any of the touch points that is within any of a specific object display area of each of one or more specific objects is determined to be higher than the weight value of those touch points that are not within the one or more specific object display areas;

respectively determine a typical coordinate value corresponding to each of the touch areas according to a coordinate value of each of the touch points within the touch areas;

select one or more active objects displayed on the touch screen according to the typical coordinate value corresponding to each of the touch areas; and

trigger an action associated with the one or more active objects.

24. A non-transitory computer readable storage medium for use in conjunction with an electronic device comprising a touch screen, wherein the computer readable storage medium comprising an executable computer program mechanism embedded therein, and wherein the executable computer program mechanism comprising instructions for:

detecting a plurality of touch areas on the touch screen so that a plurality of touch points contained within each of the touch areas are obtained;

respectively determining a typical coordinate value corresponding to each of the touch areas according to a coordinate value of each of the touch points within the touch areas;

for each of the touch areas, respectively determining a weight value of each of the touch points within the touch area, wherein the weight value of any of the touch points that is within any of a specific object display area of each of one or more specific objects is determined to be higher than the weight value of those touch points that are not within the one or more specific object display areas;

selecting one or more active objects displayed on the touch screen according to the typical coordinate value corresponding to each of the touch areas; and

triggering an action associated with the one or more active objects.