User input device failure prediction

• US 9,058,080 B2
• Filed: 08/08/2014
• Issued: 06/16/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 05/05/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: McCallum, Jeffrey R., Hajas, Tiberiu M., Rodriguez, Esperanza Darlene, Gunatilaka, Harsha D.
• Primary Examiner(s): Wilson, Yolanda L
• Application Number:
  US14/455,305
• Publication Number:
  US 20140347305A1
• Time in Patent Office: 312 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/008 Reliability or availability analysis
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0418 for error correction or compensation, e.g. based on parallax, calibration or alignment
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0488 using a touch-screen or digitiser, e.g. input of commands through traced gestures

Abstract

Detection of degradation of a user input device may allow for notifying a user of an impending failure of the user input device so that the device may be taken out of service or repaired. A method for detecting degradation of a user input device may carry out one or more operations including, but not necessarily limited to: determining that a portion of the user input device is degraded based on two or more received signals of the user input device, the two or more received signals being indicative of one or more user inputs; and providing a user notification indicative of a degradation of the user input device in response to determining that a portion of the user input device is degraded based on two or more received signals of the user input device.

Claims

1. A method for detecting degradation of a user input device, comprising:

determining that a portion of the user input device is degraded based on two or more received signals of the user input device, the two or more received signals being indicative of one or more user inputs; and

providing a user notification indicative of a degradation of the user input device in response to determining that a portion of the user input device is degraded based on two or more received signals of the user input device.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein determining that a portion of the user input device is degraded based on two or more received signals of the user input device comprises:

detecting at least one first signal indicative of at least one user input associated with a first region of the user input device;

detecting, within a threshold time period, at least one second signal associated with a second region of the user input device;

determining that a distance between the first region and the second region is greater than a threshold distance; and

determining that the portion of the user input device is degraded based on the distance between the first region and the second region being greater than the threshold distance.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein determining that a portion of the user input device is degraded based on two or more received signals of the user input device comprises:

detecting at least one first signal indicative of at least one user input associated with a region of the user input device;

detecting, within a threshold time period, two or more signals indicative of two or more repeated user inputs at least partially associated with the region of the user input device; and

determining that the portion of the user input device is degraded based on detecting, within a threshold time period, two or more signals indicative of two or more repeated user inputs at least partially associated with the region of the user input device.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein determining that a portion of the user input device is degraded based on two or more received signals of the user input device comprises:

detecting at least one signal indicative of at least one user input associated with a region of the user input device;

detecting two or more repeated signals at least partially associated with the region of the user input device;

determining that a number of the two or more repeated signals is greater than a threshold value; and

determining that the portion of the user input device is degraded based on determining that a number of the two or more repeated signals is greater than a threshold value.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein determining that a portion of the user input device is degraded based on two or more received signals of the user input device comprises:

determining, at least twice, that the portion of the user input device is degraded based on two or more received signals of the user input device, the two or more received signals being indicative of one or more user inputs,

wherein providing a user notification indicative of a degradation of the user input device in response to determining that a portion of the user input device is degraded based on two or more received signals of the user input device comprises;

upon determining, at least a threshold number of times, that the portion of the user input device is degraded, providing a user notification indicative of a degradation of the user input device in response to determining that a portion of the user input device is degraded based on two or more received signals of the user input device.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein providing a user notification indicative of a degradation of the user input device in response to determining that a portion of the user input device is degraded based on two or more received signals of the user input device comprises:

providing a visual notification.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein providing a user notification indicative of a degradation of the user input device in response to determining that a portion of the user input device is degraded based on two or more received signals of the user input device comprises:

providing an audible notification.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein providing a user notification indicative of a degradation of the user input device in response to determining that a portion of the user input device is degraded based on two or more received signals of the user input device comprises:

providing a user notification to a display device.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the user input device comprises one of a mouse, a microphone, a selection button, or a key board.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein providing a user notification indicative of a degradation of the user input device in response to determining that a portion of the user input device is degraded based on two or more received signals of the user input device comprises:

providing a user notification over a network.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein determining that a portion of the user input device is degraded based on two or more received signals of the user input device comprises:

comparing the two or more received signals of the user input device; and

determining that the portion of the user input device is degraded based on a comparison of the two or more received signals of the user input device.

12. A system for detecting degradation of a user input device, comprising:

means for determining that a portion of the user input device is degraded based on two or more received signals of the user input device, the two or more received signals being indicative of one or more user inputs; and

means for providing a user notification indicative of a degradation of the user input device in response to determining that a portion of the user input device is degraded based on two or more received signals of the user input device.

13. The system of claim 12, wherein the means for determining that a portion of the user input device is degraded based on two or more received signals of the user input device comprises:

means for detecting at least one first signal indicative of at least one user input associated with a first region of the user input device;

means for detecting, within a threshold time period, at least one second signal associated with a second region of the user input device;

means for determining that a distance between the first region and the second region is greater than a threshold distance; and

means for determining that the portion of the user input device is degraded based on the distance between the first region and the second region being greater than the threshold distance.

14. The system of claim 12, wherein the means for determining that a portion of the user input device is degraded based on two or more received signals of the user input device comprises:

means for detecting at least one first signal indicative of at least one user input associated with a region of the user input device;

means for detecting, within a threshold time period, two or more signals indicative of two or more repeated user inputs at least partially associated with the region of the user input device; and

means for determining that the portion of the user input device is degraded based on detecting, within a threshold time period, two or more signals indicative of two or more repeated user inputs at least partially associated with the region of the user input device.

15. The system of claim 12, wherein the means for determining that a portion of the user input device is degraded based on two or more received signals of the user input device comprises:

means for detecting at least one signal indicative of at least one user input associated with a region of the user input device;

means for detecting two or more repeated signals at least partially associated with the region of the user input device;

means for determining that a number of the two or more repeated signals is greater than a threshold value; and

means for determining that the portion of the user input device is degraded based on determining that a number of the two or more repeated signals is greater than a threshold value.

16. The system of claim 12, wherein the means for determining that a portion of the user input device is degraded based on two or more received signals of the user input device, the two or more received signals being indicative of one or more user inputs, comprises:

means for determining, at least twice, that the portion of the user input device is degraded based on two or more received signals of the user input device, the two or more received signals being indicative of one or more user inputs,

wherein the means for providing a user notification indicative of a degradation of the user input device in response to determining that a portion of the user input device is degraded based on two or more received signals of the user input device comprises;

means for upon determining, at least a threshold number of times, that the portion of the user input device is degraded, providing a user notification indicative of a degradation of the user input device in response to determining that a portion of the user input device is degraded based on two or more received signals of the user input device.

17. The system of claim 12, wherein the means for providing a user notification indicative of a degradation of the user input device in response to determining that a portion of the user input device is degraded based on two or more received signals of the user input device comprises:

means for providing at least one of a visual notification, an audible notification, and an electronic messaging notification.

18. A method for detecting degradation of a user input device, comprising:

detecting signals of the user input device, each of the signals being associated with a particular user input of a plurality of user inputs, wherein signals are indicative of at least one dimension of the particular user input;

computing at least one dimension for each user input of the plurality of user inputs upon detecting signals of the user input device;

computing at least one average user input dimension upon computing at least one dimension for each user input of the plurality of user inputs;

detecting one or more subsequent signals of the user input device, the one or more subsequent signals being associated with a subsequent user input, wherein the one or more subsequent signals are indicative of at least one subsequent dimension of the subsequent user input;

computing at least one dimension of the subsequent user input upon detecting one or more subsequent signals of the user input device;

computing a difference between a) a particular subsequent dimension of the at least one subsequent dimension associated with the subsequent user input and b) a particular average dimension of the at least one average user input dimension associated with the plurality of user inputs;

determining that said computed difference exceeds a threshold value;

determining that a portion of the user input device is degraded based on said computed difference exceeding the threshold value; and

providing a user notification indicative of a degradation of the user input device in response to determining that a portion of the user input device is degraded.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein determining that a portion of the user input device is degraded based on said computed difference exceeding the threshold value comprises:

determining, at least twice, that a portion of the user input device is degraded based on said computed difference exceeding the threshold value,

wherein providing a user notification indicative of a degradation of the user input device in response to determining that a portion of the user input device is degraded comprises;

upon determining, at least a threshold number of times, that a portion of the user input device is degraded based on said computed difference exceeding the threshold value, providing a user notification indicative of a degradation of the user input device in response to determining that a portion of the user input device is degraded.

20. The method of claim 18, wherein providing a user notification indicative of a degradation of the user input device in response to determining that a portion of the user input device is degraded comprises:

providing at least one of a visual notification, an audible notification, and an electronic messaging notification.