Density-based filtering of gesture events associated with a user interface of a computing device

• US 9,430,146 B1
• Filed: 02/12/2014
• Issued: 08/30/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 10/19/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Google Inc. (Alphabet Inc.)
• Inventors: Kataoka, Satoshi, Kuroyanagi, Keisuke
• Primary Examiner(s): BLOOMQUIST, KEITH D
• Application Number:
  US14/179,270
• Time in Patent Office: 930 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0416 Control or interface arrangements specially adapted for digitisers
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04883 for inputting data by handwriting, e.g. gesture or text
• 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

In one example, a computing device may receive an indication of a user input entered at a location of a presence-sensitive screen and defines a group of gesture events based at least in part on the indication. The computing device may determine a density of a portion of the group of gesture events. The density may indicate, for example, a quantity of gesture events associated with a region of the presence-sensitive screen over a time duration. In response to determining that the density satisfies a threshold, the computing device may modify the group of gesture events based at least in part on the density.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

receiving, by a computing device, a group of gesture events based on an input entered at a graphical keyboard, wherein at least two gesture events in the group of gesture events comprise representations of one or more locations of the graphical keyboard;

determining, by the computing device, a density of a portion of the group of gesture events if at least one gesture event is removed from the portion of the group of gesture events, wherein the density indicates a quantity of gesture events associated with an area of the graphical keyboard in which locations of the gesture events in the portion of the group of gesture events, if the at least one gesture event is removed, are located; and

responsive to determining that the density satisfies a threshold, removing, by the computing device, the at least one gesture event from the group of gesture events to reduce the density of the portion of the group of gesture events.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the quantity is a particular quantity, and wherein the method further comprises reducing, by the computing device, a total quantity of gesture events in the group of gesture events.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the density is an initial density, the quantity is an initial quantity, the area is an initial area, and the method further comprises:

determining, by the computing device, a subsequent density of the portion of the group of gesture events after representing at least two gesture events in the portion of the group of gesture events into a single gesture event in the portion of the group of gesture events, wherein the subsequent density is based on a subsequent quantity of gesture events in the portion of the group of gesture events, after the at least two gesture events of the portion of the group of gesture events are represented as the single gesture event in the portion of the group of gesture events; and

responsive to determining the subsequent density satisfies the threshold, replacing, by the computing device, the at least two gesture events in the portion of the group of gesture events with the single gesture event in the portion of the group of gesture events.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

prior to receiving the group of gesture events based on the input entered at the graphical keyboard, outputting, by the computing device, for display, the graphical keyboard.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the input comprises a gesture input that indicates a plurality of keys associated with the graphical keyboard.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the threshold comprises a predefined density value.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the density is a subsequent density, wherein the portion of the group of gesture events comprises gesture events based on a subsequent portion of the input, and wherein the threshold indicates an initial density of gesture events based on an initial portion of the user input different from the subsequent portion of the input.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the gesture events are touch events associated with a region of a presence-sensitive display.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

subsequent to removing the group of gesture events to reduce the density of the portion of the group of gesture events, outputting, by the computing device, for transmission to an application associated with the graphical keyboard, the modified group of gesture events.

10. The method of claim 1, the method further comprises:

determining, by the computing device, a mean gesture event from the portion of the group of gesture events; and

replacing, by the computing device, at least one gesture event of the portion of the group of gesture events with the mean gesture event.

11. The method of claim 1, further comprising subsequent to removing the at least one gesture event from the group of gesture events to reduce the density of the portion of the group of gesture events, determining, by the computing device, based on the group of gesture events, a selection of one or more keys of the graphical keyboard.

12. A computing device comprising:

at least one processor; and

at least one module operable by the at least one processor to;

receive a group of gesture events based on an input entered at a graphical keyboard, wherein at least two gesture events in the group of gesture events comprise representations of one or more locations of the graphical keyboard;

determine a density of a portion of the group of gesture events if representing at least two gesture events in the portion of the group of gesture events as a single gesture event in the portion of the group of gesture events, wherein the density indicates a quantity of gesture events associated with an area of the graphical keyboard in which locations of the gesture events in the portion of the group of gesture events, if the at least two gesture events of the portion of the group of gesture events are represented as the single gesture event in the portion of the group of gesture events, are located; and

responsive to determining that the density satisfies a threshold, replace the at least two gesture events in the portion of the group of gesture events with the single gesture event in the portion of the group of gesture events to reduce the density of the portion of the group of gesture events.

13. The computing device of claim 12, wherein the quantity is a particular quantity, and the at least one module is further operable by the at least one processor to reduce a total quantity of gesture events in the group of gesture events.

14. The computing device of claim 12, further comprising an input device and a display device, wherein the at least one module is further operable by the at least one processor to:

output, for display at the display device, the graphical keyboard; and

detect, at the input device, the input entered at the graphical keyboard.

15. The computing device of claim 12, wherein the at least one module is further operable by the at least one processor to subsequent to replacing the at least two gesture events in the portions of the group of gesture events with the single gesture event in the portion of the group of gesture events to reduce the density of the portion of the group of gesture events, output, for transmission to an application associated with the graphical keyboard, the modified group of gesture events.

16. The computing device of claim 12, wherein the at least one module is further operable by the at least one processor to:

determine a mean gesture event from the portion of the group of gesture events; and

replace at least one gesture event of the portion of the group of gesture events with the mean gesture event.

17. The computing device of claim 12, wherein the at least one module is further operable by the at least one processor to remove one or more gesture events from the group of gesture events to reduce the density of the portion of the group of gesture events.

18. A computer-readable storage medium encoded with instructions that, when executed, cause at least one processor of a computing device to:

receive a group of gesture events based on an input entered at a graphical keyboard, wherein at least two gesture events in the group of gesture events comprise representations of one or more locations of the graphical keyboard;

determine a density of a portion of the group of gesture events if at least one gesture event is removed from the portion of the group of gesture events, wherein the density indicates a quantity of gesture events associated with an area of the graphical keyboard in which locations of the gesture events in the portion of the group of gesture events, if the at least one gesture event is removed, are located; and

responsive to determining that the density satisfies a threshold, remove the at least one gesture event from the group of gesture events to reduce the density of the portion of the group of gesture events.