Manipulation of graphical elements via gestures

• US 9,152,317 B2
• Filed: 08/14/2009
• Issued: 10/06/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 08/14/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Inventors: Larco, Vanessa A., Wigdor, Daniel J., Williams, Sarah Graham
• Primary Examiner(s): NABI, REZA U
• Application Number:
  US12/541,795
• Publication Number:
  US 20110041096A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,244 Days
• Field of Search: 715/863
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04808 Several contacts: gestures triggering a specific function, e.g. scrolling, zooming, right-click, when the user establishes several contacts with the surface simultaneously; e.g. using several fingers or a combination of fingers and pen
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0482 Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04883 for inputting data by handwriting, e.g. gesture or text

Abstract

A method of operating a graphical user interface of a computing device is disclosed. The method comprises displaying a graphical user interface (GUI) element on the touch sensitive display screen. The method further comprises in response to receiving touch input data indicative of a one-touch gesture mapping the one-touch gesture to a corresponding GUI element function. The method further comprises in response to receiving touch input data indicative of a multi-touch gesture, mapping the multi-touch gesture to the corresponding GUI element function. The method further comprises transforming display of the GUI element on the touch sensitive display screen based on the corresponding GUI element function.

Claims

1. A method of operating a touch sensitive display screen of a computing device comprising:

displaying a graphical user interface (GUI) element on the touch sensitive display screen;

in response to receiving touch input data indicative of a one-touch gesture, the one-touch gesture comprising a sequence starting with initiation of a single touch input at a first endpoint in a first region, sliding along a path from the first endpoint to a second endpoint in a second region, and ending with the single touch input lifting from the touch sensitive display screen at the second region, mapping the one-touch gesture to a corresponding GUI element function;

in response to receiving touch input data indicative of a multi-touch gesture, the multi-touch gesture comprising multiple concurrent, temporally overlapping touch inputs, the multi-touch gesture including a first touch input being at the first endpoint of the path in the first region while a second touch input is at the second endpoint of the path in the second region, mapping the multi-touch gesture to the corresponding GUI element function, the corresponding GUI element function for the multi-touch gesture being the same as the corresponding GUI element function for the one-touch gesture; and

transforming display of the GUI element on the touch sensitive display screen based on the corresponding GUI element function, wherein

the GUI element includes a menu having a plurality of GUI sub-elements associated with the GUI element;

the plurality of GUI sub-elements are organized according to a branching hierarchy; and

the plurality of GUI sub-elements include at least one submenu element and/or at least one selectable menu option.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein transforming includes performing a computing operation of a selected menu option of the at least one selectable menu option.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein transforming includes displaying a set of GUI sub-elements associated with a selected submenu element of the at least one submenu element.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein transforming includes highlighting a selected submenu and/or a selected menu option.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the plurality of GUI sub-elements are arranged in a radial pattern around the GUI element and the GUI element and each of the plurality of GUI sub-elements are connected via an animated path.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the animated path includes an animated indicator that repeatedly travels from the GUI element to each of the plurality of GUI sub-elements.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one submenu element and/or at least one selectable menu option is located at the second endpoint and is associated with the corresponding GUI element function.

8. A touch sensitive computing system comprising:

a touch sensitive display screen configured to generate touch input data based on touch input on the touch sensitive display screen; and

a graphical user interface (GUI) program configured to display a GUI element on the touch sensitive display screen that is selectively transformable based on the touch input data, the GUI program comprising;

a gesture recognizer comprising;

a one-touch module configured to receive the touch input data and recognize a one-touch gesture, the one-touch gesture comprising a sequence starting with initiation of a single touch input at a first endpoint in a first region, sliding along a path from the first endpoint to a second endpoint in a second region, and ending with the single touch input lifting from the touch sensitive display screen at the second endpoint;

a multi-touch module configured to receive the touch input data and recognize a multi-touch gesture, the multi-touch gesture comprising multiple concurrent, temporally overlapping touch inputs, wherein the multi-touch gesture includes a first touch input being at the first endpoint of the path in the first region and a second touch input being at the second endpoint of the path in the second region while the first touch input is in the first region; and

a gesture library including a plurality of GUI element functions, at least some of the plurality of GUI element functions each being mapped to a corresponding one-touch gesture as well as to a corresponding multi-touch gesture, the gesture library being configured to provide a selected function of the plurality of GUI element functions to the touch sensitive display screen to transform display of the GUI element in response to receiving a corresponding one-touch gesture from the one-touch module or a corresponding multi-touch gesture from the multi-touch module that is mapped to the selected function, wherein

the GUI element includes a menu having a plurality of GUI sub-elements associated with the GUI element;

the plurality of GUI sub-elements are organized according to a branching hierarchy; and

the plurality of GUI sub-elements include at least one submenu element and/or at least one selectable menu option.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein the selected function includes displaying a set of GUI sub-elements associated with a selected GUI sub-element of the plurality of GUI sub-elements.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein the set of GUI sub-elements are arranged in a radial pattern around the selected GUI sub-element and each GUI sub-element of the set of GUI sub-elements is connected to the selected GUI sub-element via an animated path.

11. The system of claim 10, wherein the at least one submenu element and/or at least one selectable menu option is located at the second endpoint and is associated with the selected function.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein the selected function includes concealing all GUI sub-elements of the plurality of GUI sub-elements that are not selected as the selected GUI sub-element.

13. A method of operating a touch sensitive display screen of a computing device comprising:

displaying a graphical user interface (GUI) element on the touch sensitive display screen;

in response to receiving touch input data indicative of a first touch input being initiated in or entering a first endpoint in a first region of the touch sensitive display screen corresponding to the GUI element, displaying a first set of GUI elements associated with the GUI element;

in response to receiving touch input data indicative of the first touch input sliding along a path to leave the first region and enter a second endpoint in a second region of the touch sensitive display screen corresponding to a selected GUI element of the first set of GUI elements that is being displayed, displaying a second set of GUI elements associated with the selected GUI element; and

in response to receiving touch input data indicative of a second touch input being initiated in or entering the second region at the second endpoint of the path concurrently while the first touch input is at the first endpoint of the path in the first region, displaying the second set of GUI elements associated with the selected GUI element,

wherein the GUI element includes a menu and the first set of GUI elements and the second set of GUI elements, wherein the first set of GUI elements and the second set of GUI elements include sub-menus and/or selectable menu options organized according to a branching hierarchy.

14. The method of claim 13, further comprising:

in response to receiving touch input data indicative of the first touch input and the second touch input lifting from the touch sensitive display screen, concealing the first set of GUI elements and concealing the second set of GUI elements.

15. The method of claim 13, further comprising:

in response to the first touch input entering the second region of the touch sensitive display screen corresponding to the selected GUI element of the first set of GUI elements, concealing all non-selected GUI elements of the first set of GUI elements; and

in response to the second touch input being initiated in or entering the second region while the first touch input is in the first region, concealing all non-selected GUI elements of the first set of GUI elements.