Skinnable touch device grip patterns

• US 9,519,419 B2
• Filed: 01/17/2012
• Issued: 12/13/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 01/17/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Inventors: Hinckley, Kenneth P., Dietz, Paul Henry, Benko, Hrvoje, Tan, Desney S., Bathiche, Steven Nabil
• Primary Examiner(s): Pervan, Michael
• Assistant Examiner(s): Lee, Andrew
• Application Number:
  US13/352,193
• Publication Number:
  US 20130181902A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,792 Days
• Field of Search: 345/168, 345/169, 345/173, 345/441, 715/863
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1626 with a single-body enclosure integrating a flat display, e.g. Personal Digital Assistants [PDAs]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1684 Constructional details or arrangements related to integrated I/O peripherals not covered by groups G06F1/1635 - G06F1/1675
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/169 the I/O peripheral being an integrated pointing device, e.g. trackball in the palm rest area, mini-joystick integrated between keyboard keys, touch pads or touch stripes G06F1/1643 takes precedence; constructional details of pointing devices G06F3/033
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/041 Digitisers, e.g. for touch screens or touch pads, characterised by the transducing means
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0488 using a touch-screen or digitiser, e.g. input of commands through traced gestures

Abstract

Skinnable touch device grip pattern techniques are described herein. A touch-aware skin may be configured to substantially cover the outer surfaces of a computing device. The touch-aware skin may include a plurality of skin sensors configured to detect interaction with the skin at defined locations. The computing device may include one or more modules operable to obtain input from the plurality of skin sensors and decode the input to determine grips patterns that indicate how the computing device is being held by a user. Various functionality provided by the computing device may be selectively enabled and/or adapted based on a determined grip pattern such that the provided functionality may change to match the grip pattern.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

obtaining input associated with a plurality of skin sensors of a touch-aware skin for a computing device, the plurality of skin sensors disposed across available outer surfaces of a housing for the computing device to form a continuous grid;

detecting a combination of a grip pattern and a device placement based upon the input;

ascertaining a context for the computing device associated with the combination of the grip pattern and the device placement as detected, the device placement corresponding at least in part to contact between the computing device and an object;

selectively activating and deactivating grip sensing and touch input of the skin sensors associated with different outer surfaces according to the ascertained context; and

selectively customizing interaction with the computing device according to the ascertained context.

2. A method as described in claim 1, wherein the grip pattern corresponds to a particular way in which a user holds the computing device.

3. A method as described in claim 1, wherein detecting the input indicative of a scenario of use comprises detecting one or more contact points of the touch-aware skin with at least one of a user or the object.

4. A method as described in claim 1, wherein at least one of said skin sensors is configured as a capacitive touch sensor to detect interaction of users and objects on and proximate to a surface of the touch-aware skin.

5. A method as described in claim 1, wherein selectively customizing interaction comprises modifying a user interface for the computing device to optimize the user interface for the ascertained context.

6. A method as described in claim 1, wherein selectively customizing interaction comprises adapting a soft keyboard for the computing device to optimize the soft keyboard by changing one or more of a size, a location, or sensitivity of keyboard keys for the soft keyboard according to the detected grip pattern.

7. A method as described in claim 1, wherein selectively customizing interaction comprises changing touch sensitivity for one or more locations on a touchscreen of the computing device based upon the detected grip pattern to decrease unintentional triggering of touchscreen functionality due to hand positions.

8. A method as described in claim 1, wherein selectively customizing interaction according to the ascertained context comprises:

enabling one or more on-skin gestures,

enabling one or more on-screen gestures, and

enabling one or more combination gestures that combine on-skin input and on-screen input.

9. A computing device comprising:

a processing system;

a touch-aware skin having one or more skin sensors that form a grid substantially covering outer surfaces of the computing device including over edges and a back-side of the computing device; and

a skin driver module operable via the processing system to control the touch-aware skin;

including;

obtaining input received via the one or more skin sensors at designated locations of the touch-aware skin;

detecting a combination of a grip pattern and a device placement based upon the input received at the designated locations of the touch-aware skin, the device placement corresponding at least in part to contact between the computing device and an object;

deriving a context for interaction with the device that reflects the combination of the grip pattern and the device placement as detected;

selectively activating and deactivating grip sensing and touch input of the one or more skin sensors according to the derived context;

selectively adjusting sensitivity of the one or more skin sensors corresponding to the derived context; and

enabling grip dependent functionality of the computing device corresponding to the derived context.

10. A computing device as described in claim 9, wherein the grid is formed as a grid of wired sensors molded into a housing of the computing device.

11. A computing device as described in claim 9, wherein enabling grip dependent functionality comprises:

determining an identity of a user of the computing device based upon the detected grip pattern;

enforcing parental controls when the user is identified as a child based upon the detected grip pattern; and

adapting one or more features of the computing device to correspond to the determined identity of the user.

12. A computing device as described in claim 9, wherein enabling grip dependent functionality comprises activating multiple different surfaces of the computing device for touch-based interaction based upon the detected grip pattern.

13. A computing device as described in claim 9, wherein enabling grip dependent functionality comprises activating one or more on-skin gestures applicable to the touch-aware skin based upon the detected grip pattern.

14. A computing device as described in claim 9, wherein enabling grip dependent functionality comprises:

ascertaining a content viewing context corresponding to the detected grip pattern in which a content presentation is output for viewing via a display device of the computing device; and

activating the back-side of the computing device for input of one or more on-skin gestures to control the content presentation.

15. A computing device as described in claim 9, wherein enabling grip dependent functionality comprises implementing one or more on-skin controls for selected device functionality on one or more surfaces of the touch-aware skin based upon a context associated with the detected grip pattern.

16. A computing device as described in claim 9, wherein the one or more sensors are configured to detect direct contact with the touch-aware skin, proximity to the touch-aware skin, forces applied to the touch-aware skin, and deformations of the touch-aware skin.

17. A computing device as described in claim 9, wherein the touch-aware skin is configured as a removable add-on for the computing device.

18. One or more computer-readable storage media storing instructions that, when executed via a computing device, cause the computing device to implement a skin driver module configured to perform operations including:

detecting input applied to the computing device through a touch-aware skin of the computing device configured as a grid of sensors formed within the touch-aware skin substantially covering at least a back side of the computing device;

detecting a combination of a grip pattern and a device placement based upon the applied input;

ascertaining a context for the computing device that reflects the combination of the grip pattern and the device placement as detected, the device placement corresponding at least in part to contact between the computing device and an object;

determining an identity of a user of the computing device based upon the detected grip pattern;

selectively activating and deactivating grip sensing and touch input of the sensors according to the ascertained context;

selectively turning sensitivity of the activated sensors up or down based upon the ascertained context; and

adapting one or more features of the computing device to correspond to the determined identity of the user.

19. One or more computer-readable storage media as described in claim 18, wherein adapting one or more features of the computing device comprises automatically applying user preferences and permissions corresponding to the identity of the user that is determined.

20. One or more computer-readable storage media as described in claim 18, wherein determining the identity of the user comprises:

associating the user with a grip pattern registered by the user; and

matching the detected grip pattern to the grip pattern registered by the user to resolve the identity of the user.