Hover angle

• US 9,262,012 B2
• Filed: 01/03/2014
• Issued: 02/16/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 01/03/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Hwang, Dan, Dai, Lynn, Usman, Muhammad
• Primary Examiner(s): Cheng, Joe H
• Application Number:
  US14/147,085
• Publication Number:
  US 20150193040A1
• Time in Patent Office: 774 Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04108 Touchless 2D- digitiser, i.e. digitiser detecting the X/Y position of the input means, finger or stylus, also when it does not touch, but is proximate to the digitiser's interaction surface without distance measurement in the Z direction
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/042 by opto-electronic means
• 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

Abstract

Example apparatus and methods concern detecting an angle at which an object is interacting with a hover-sensitive input/output interface. An example apparatus may include a proximity detector configured to detect an object in a hover-space associated with the hover-sensitive input/output interface. The proximity detector may provide three dimensional position information for the object (e.g., x,y,z). The angle may be determined from a first (x,y,z) measurement associated with a first portion (e.g., tip) of the object and a second (x,y,z) measurement associated with a second portion (e.g., end) of the object. The position of the object may determine a hover point on the interface while the position and angle may determine an intersection point on the interface. User interface elements or other information displayed on the interface may be manipulated based, at least in part, on the intersection point. Multiple objects interacting at multiple angles may be detected and responded to.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

acquiring position data about a portion of an object located at least partially in a three-dimensional hover space produced by a portable apparatus having a hover-sensitive interface,

where the position data is acquired solely by a passive capacitive sensing node that detects a capacitance change in the hover space caused by the object;

where the position data describes the position of the object in the three-dimensional hover space, where a first dimension and a second dimension in the hover space define a plane that is parallel to the surface of the interface, where the second dimension is orthogonal to the first dimension, and where a third dimension in the hover space is orthogonal to both the first dimension and the second dimension and perpendicular to the plane;

computing an angle at which the object is pitched with respect to the hover-sensitive interface based, at least in part, on the position data; and

controlling the hover-sensitive interface based, at least in part, on the angle at which the object is pitched with respect to the hover-sensitive interface.

2. The method of claim 1, where the portable apparatus is a phone or tablet computer, and where the position data is acquired solely from a sensor located in the apparatus or solely from a sensor located on the apparatus.

3. The method of claim 2, where the angle is computed based on position data associated with two different portions of the object.

4. The method of claim 2, where the object is a finger and where the angle is computed based on position data for a distant phalange on the finger.

5. The method of claim 2, comprising establishing a hover point for the object based, at least in part, on information in the position data about the location of a portion of the object in the first dimension and the location of the object in the second dimension.

6. The method of claim 2, comprising establishing an intersection point for the object based, at least in part, on information in the position data about the location of the object in the first dimension, the location of the object in the second dimension, the location of the object in the third dimension, and on the angle.

7. The method of claim 6, comprising:

selectively controlling the appearance of the hover-sensitive interface based, at least in part, on the intersection point;

selectively controlling the operation of the hover-sensitive interface based, at least in part, on the intersection point, or

selectively controlling the operation of a user interface element on the hover-sensitive interface based, at least in part, on the intersection point.

8. The method of claim 7, where the hover-sensitive interface displays an item, and where controlling the appearance of the hover sensitive interface comprises re-orienting the item displayed on the hover-sensitive interface.

9. The method of claim 7, where controlling the appearance of the hover-sensitive interface includes dynamically reconfiguring a user interface element, where reconfiguring the user interface element includes changing an appearance of the user interface element, changing a position of the user interface element, changing an orientation of the user interface element, changing a size of the user interface element, or simulating a mouse-over event for the user interface element.

10. The method of claim 7, where controlling the operation of the hover-sensitive interface includes enhancing a functionality of a first user interface element located in an area within a threshold distance of the intersection point or diminishing the functionality of a second user interface element located beyond the threshold distance from the intersection point.

11. The method of claim 7, where controlling the operation of the user interface element includes controlling a direction of a graphical effect associated with the user interface element, controlling an intensity of a graphical effect associated with the user interface element, or controlling an area impacted by a graphical effect associated with the user interface element.

12. The method of claim 6, comprising:

fixing the intersection point;

acquiring second position data about the object, where the second position data is acquired solely by a passive capacitive sensing node that detects a capacitance change in the hover space caused by the object;

computing a second angle at which the object is pitched with respect to the hover-sensitive interface;

establishing a second intersection point for the object based, at least in part, on information in the second position data about the location of the object in the first dimension, the location of the object in the second dimension, the location of the object in the third dimension, and on the second angle; and

selectively controlling, based on a relationship between the intersection point and the second intersection point, the appearance of the hover-sensitive interface, the operation of the hover-sensitive interface, or the operation of the user interface element on the hover-sensitive interface.

13. The method of claim 2, comprising:

identifying a portion of the hover-sensitive interface that is occluded by the object based, at least in part, on the position data and the angle, and

selectively manipulating the portion of the hover-sensitive interface that is occluded by the object.

14. The method of claim 2, comprising:

acquiring second position data about a second object located in the three-dimensional hover space;

where the second position data is acquired solely by a passive capacitive sensing node that detects a capacitance change in the hover space caused by the second object;

computing a second angle at which the second object is pitched with respect to the hover-sensitive interface based, at least in part, on the second position data; and

controlling the hover-sensitive interface based, at least in part, on a relationship between the angle at which the first object is pitched with respect to the hover-sensitive interface and the second angle.

15. A computer-readable storage device storing computer-executable instructions that when executed by a computer cause the computer to perform a method, the method comprising:

acquiring position data about a portion of an object located at least partially in a three-dimensional hover space produced by a phone or tablet computer having a hover-sensitive interface,

where the position data is acquired by a passive capacitive sensing node that detects a capacitance change in the hover space caused by the object;

where the position data describes the position of the object in the three dimensional hover space, where a first dimension and a second dimension in the hover space define a plane that is parallel to the surface of the hover-sensitive interface, where the second dimension is orthogonal to the first dimension, and where a third dimension in the hover space is orthogonal to both the first dimension and the second dimension and perpendicular to the plane;

computing an angle at which the object is pitched with respect to the hover-sensitive interface based on the position data, where the angle is computed based on position data associated with two different portions of the object;

establishing a hover point for the object based, at least in part, on information in the position data about the location of a portion of the object in the first dimension and the location of the object in the second dimension;

establishing an intersection point for the object based, at least in part, on information in the position data about the location of the object in the first dimension, the location of the object in the second dimension, the location of the object in the third dimension, and on the angle;

identifying a portion of the hover-sensitive interface that is occluded by the object based, at least in part, on the position data and the angle, and selectively manipulating the portion of the hover-sensitive interface that is occluded by the object;

and

selectively controlling the appearance of the hover-sensitive interface based, at least in part, on the angle, the hover point, and the intersection point, where controlling the appearance of the hover-sensitive interface comprises re-orienting an item displayed on the hover-sensitive interface, or dynamically reconfiguring a user interface element, where reconfiguring the user interface element includes changing an appearance of the user interface element, changing a position of the user interface element, changing an orientation of the user interface element, changing a size of the user interface element, or simulating a mouse-over event for the user interface element;

selectively controlling the operation of the hover-sensitive interface based, at least in part, on the angle, the hover point, and the intersection point, where controlling the operation of the hover-sensitive interface includes enhancing a functionality of a first user interface element located in an area within a threshold distance of the intersection point or diminishing the functionality of a second user interface element located beyond the threshold distance from the intersection point;

or

selectively controlling the operation of a user interface element on the hover-sensitive interface based, at least in part, on the angle, the hover point, or the intersection point, where controlling the operation of the user interface element includes controlling a direction of a graphical effect associated with the user interface element, controlling an intensity of a graphical effect associated with the user interface element, or controlling an area impacted by a graphical effect associated with the user interface element.

16. An apparatus, comprising:

a processor;

a hover-sensitive input/output interface;

a proximity detector configured to detect a portion of an object in a hover-space associated with the hover-sensitive input/output interface and to provide location data concerning the portion of the object, where the proximity detector includes a passive capacitive sensing node that detects a capacitance change in the hover-space;

a memory;

a set of logics configured to process events associated with the hover-space and the object; and

an interface configured to connect the processor, the hover-sensitive input/output interface, the proximity detector, the memory, and the set of logics;

the set of logics including;

a first logic configured to handle a hover event associated with the object in the hover-space, where handling the hover event includes producing first location data that identifies a first location in the hover space at which a first portion of the object is located and producing second location data that identifies a second location in the hover space at which a second portion of the object is located,

where the first location data and second location data are acquired passively by the hover-sensitive input/output interface using the passive capacitive sensing node; and

a second logic configured to produce angle information from the first location data and the second location data, where the angle information describes an angle at which the object intersects a normal of the input/output interface.

17. The apparatus of claim 16, comprising:

a third logic configured to produce hover data describing a hover point associated with the object and the input/output interface and to produce a projection data describing a projection point associated with the object and the input/output interface; and

a fourth logic configured to generate a control event based on the hover data or the projected data.

18. The apparatus of claim 17, where the first location data, the second location data, the hover data or the projection data are described using Cartesian, cylindrical, polar co-ordinates, or spherical co-ordinates.

19. The apparatus of claim 17, where the control event is configured to control the appearance of a display on the input/output interface, to control the operation of the input/output interface, to control the appearance of a user interface element on the input/output interface, or to control the operation of a user interface element on the input/output interface.

20. The apparatus of claim 17, where the control event is a mouse over event.