Determining input received via tactile input device

• US 9,330,545 B2
• Filed: 07/17/2013
• Issued: 05/03/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 07/17/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Google Inc. (Alphabet Inc.)
• Inventors: Kempin, Dennis, de los Reyes, Andrew
• Primary Examiner(s): DANIELSEN, NATHAN ANDREW
• Application Number:
  US13/944,268
• Publication Number:
  US 20150022461A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,021 Days
• Field of Search: 345/156, 345/157, 345173-178, 345/184
• 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 3/03547 Touch pads, in which fingers can move on a surface
• 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: G08B 6/00 Tactile signalling systems, e.g. personal calling systems

Abstract

A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium may include instructions stored thereon. When executed by at least one processor, the instructions may be configured to cause a computing system including a tactile input device to at least detect a depression of the tactile input device, detect a number of contacts at the tactile input device, each of the detected contacts being associated with a duration and a distance moved, and determine, based on the number of detected contacts on the tactile input device, the durations of the detected contacts, and the distances moved of the detected contacts, a type of input to process.

Claims

1. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium comprising instructions stored thereon that, when executed by at least one processor, are configured to cause a computing system including a tactile input device to at least:

detect a depression at a single dome switch of the tactile input device, the single dome switch encompassing most of an area under a surface of the tactile input device;

after detecting the depression at the single dome switch of the tactile input device, detect a number of contacts at the tactile input device, each of the detected contacts being associated with a duration and a distance moved; and

after detecting the number of contacts at the tactile input device, determine, based on the number of detected contacts on the tactile input device, the durations of the detected contacts, and the distances moved of the detected contacts, a type of input to process.

2. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 1, wherein the instructions are configured to cause the computing system to determine whether to process a left-click or a right-click based on the number of detected contacts on the tactile input device, the durations of the detected contacts, and whether the detected contacts are moving across the tactile input device.

3. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 1, wherein the instructions are configured to cause the computing system to determine whether to process a left-click, a middle-click, or a right-click based on the number of detected contacts on the tactile input device, at least one distance between the detected contacts, the durations of the detected contacts, and whether the detected contacts are moving across the tactile input device.

4. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 1, wherein the instructions are configured to cause the computing system to determine the type of input to process based on the number of detected contacts on the tactile input device, the durations of the detected contacts, the distances moved of the detected contacts, and a distance between the detected contacts.

5. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium comprising instructions stored thereon that, when executed by at least one processor, are configured to cause a computing system including a tactile input device to at least:

detect two contacts at the tactile input device;

after detecting the two contacts at the tactile input device, if only one of the two detected contacts has moved at least a threshold distance across the tactile input device, determine that a type of input is a first input type; and

after detecting the two contacts at the tactile input device, if neither of the detected contacts has moved at least a threshold distance across the tactile input device or both of the detected contacts has moved at least the threshold distance across the tactile input device, determine;

that the type of input is a second input type if the two detected contacts are within a threshold distance from each other; and

that the type of input is the first input type if the two detected contacts are not within the threshold distance from each other.

6. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 5, wherein the first input type is a left-click and the second input type is a right-click.

7. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 5, wherein the detecting two contacts is performed in response to detecting a depression of the tactile input device.

8. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium comprising instructions stored thereon that, when executed by at least one processor, are configured to cause a computing system including a tactile input device to at least:

detect three or more contacts at the tactile input device;

if a first and second of the at least three detected contacts have moved at least a threshold distance across the tactile input device and a third of the at least three detected contacts has not moved at least the threshold distance, determine whether the third detected contact is an inadvertent contact, the determining whether the third detected contact is an inadvertent contact being performed after determining that the first and second contacts have moved at least the threshold distance and the third detected contact has not moved at least the threshold distance, the determining whether the third detected contact is an inadvertent contact including determining whether the third detected contact was in a dampened area of the tactile input device;

if the third detected contact is determined to be an inadvertent contact, ignore the third detected contact, and

if the third detected contact is determined not to be an inadvertent contact, determine that a type of input is a first input type.

9. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 8, wherein the determining the type of input to process includes:

if all of the at least three detected contacts have durations that are less than or equal to a threshold duration, determining whether all of the at least three detected contacts are outside the dampened area on the tactile input device,

if all of the at least three detected contacts are outside the dampened area;

if the at least three detected contacts includes three detected contacts, determining that the type of input is the first input type, and

if the at least three detected contacts includes four detected contacts, determining that the type of input is a second input type.

10. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 8, wherein the detecting three or more contacts is performed in response to detecting a depression of the tactile input device.

11. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 8, wherein the determining whether the third detected contact is an inadvertent contact includes determining whether the third detected contact is a thumb.

12. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 8, wherein all of the dampened area is farther from a keyboard of the computing device than a primary area, the primary area being portions of the tactile input device other than the dampened area.

13. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium comprising instructions stored thereon that, when executed by at least one processor, are configured to cause a computing system including a tactile input device to at least:

detect at least one contact on the tactile input device;

after detecting the at least one contact, determine whether the at least one contact is moving across the tactile input device;

if the at least one contact is moving across the tactile input device, classify the at least one contact as a first type based on the at least one contact moving across the tactile input device;

if the at least one contact is not moving across the tactile input device, determine whether the at least one contact initiated contact with the tactile input device at least a threshold time before a current time;

classify the at least one contact as a second type if the at least one contact initiated contact with the tactile input device at least the threshold time before a current time and was determined not to be moving across the tactile input device; and

classify the at least one contact as a third type if the at least one contact initiated contact with the tactile input device less than, or no more than, the threshold time before the current time, and was determined not to be moving across the tactile input device.

14. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 13, wherein:

the at least one detected contact includes a first contact and a second contact,

the first contact is classified as the first type, and

the second contact is classified as the second type.

15. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 13, wherein:

the at least one detected contact includes a first contact and a second contact,

the first contact is classified as the first type, and

the second contact is classified as the third type.

16. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 13, wherein:

the at least one detected contact includes a first contact and a second contact,

the first contact is classified as the second type, and

the second contact is classified as the third type.

17. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 13, wherein the at least one contact is classified as the second type based on having initiated contact with the tactile input device at least the threshold time before the current time and being determined not to be moving across the tactile input device, or based on the computing system determining that the at least one contact was a thumb contact.

18. A computer-implemented method comprising:

detecting at least one contact on a tactile input device;

after detecting the at least one contact, determining whether the at least one contact is moving across the tactile input device;

if the at least one contact is moving across the tactile input device, classifying the at least one contact as a first type based on the at least one contact moving across the tactile input device;

if the at least one contact is not moving across the tactile input device, determining whether the at least one contact initiated contact with the tactile input device at least a threshold time before a current time;

classifying the at least one contact as a second type if the at least one contact initiated contact with the tactile input device at least the threshold time before a current time and was determined not to be moving across the tactile input; and

classifying the at least one contact as a third type if the at least one contact initiated contact with the tactile input device less than, or no more than, the threshold time before the current time, and was determined not to be moving across the tactile input device.

19. The computer-implemented method of claim 18, wherein:

the at least one detected contact includes a first contact and a second contact,

the first contact is classified as the first type, and

the second contact is classified as the second type.

20. The computer-implemented method of claim 18, wherein:

the at least one detected contact includes a first contact and a second contact,

the first contact is classified as the first type, and

the second contact is classified as the third type.

21. The computer-implemented method of claim 18, further comprising determining, based on the determined classification of the at least one contact and a number of other contacts on the tactile input device, ages of each of the contacts, and whether each of the contacts are moving across the tactile input device, a type of input to process.