Information processing apparatus and method for outputting a guiding operation to a user

• US 9,569,057 B2
• Filed: 12/05/2012
• Issued: 02/14/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 01/05/2012
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.), Sony Mobile Communications Incorporated (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Ooka, Tatsuya
• Primary Examiner(s): Bycer, Eric J
• Application Number:
  US13/705,469
• Publication Number:
  US 20130179780A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,532 Days
• Field of Search: 715/701, 715/702, 715/705, 715/708, 715/784, 715/785, 715/788, 715/863, 715/864, 715/865, 715/866, 715/848, 715/850, 701/409, 701/425, 701/428, 701/431, 701/526
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/20 Instruments for performing navigational calculations G01C21/24, G01C21/26 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3652 Guidance using non-audiovisual output, e.g. tactile, haptic or electric stimuli
• 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 3/016 Input arrangements with force or tactile feedback as computer generated output to the user
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/048 Interaction techniques based on graphical user interfaces [GUI]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04812 Interaction techniques based on cursor appearance or behaviour, e.g. being affected by the presence of displayed objects
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0484 for the control of specific functions or operations, e.g. selecting or manipulating an object, an image or a displayed text element, setting a parameter value or selecting a range
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0485 Scrolling or panning
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04895 Guidance during keyboard input operation, e.g. prompting
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04897 Special input arrangements or commands for improving display capability
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/453 Help systems

Abstract

An information processing apparatus that determines a direction to browsed next as a guiding direction with a location of content displayed by a display of the information processing apparatus as a reference location; determines a perceptual strength of each of a plurality of active elements disposed in different locations on or within a casing of the information processing apparatus based on the guiding direction; and controls each of the plurality of active elements based on the perceptual strengths.

Claims

1. An information processing apparatus, comprising:

a casing with at least four corners;

a display including a display screen region, the display displaying a portion of three-dimensional (3D) content that fits within the display screen region, and the display supported by the casing;

a processing circuit that determines a direction to be browsed next as a guiding direction according to a location of the portion of the 3D content displayed in the display screen region and a target location of the 3D content to be browsed next; and

a perceptual active element including four active elements, each active element of the four active elements disposed at different corners of the casing, and each active element of the four active elements outputs a tactile output signal of a guiding operation to a user according to a control signal of the processing circuit, wherein

the guiding operation is output when the target location is outside of the display screen region,

the processing circuit is configured to

determine a perceptual strength of each tactile output signal output by the four active elements, for the output of the guiding operation, based on the guiding direction,

determine non-zero intensities of at least three of the four active elements based on a depth distance of a particular plane, on which the 3D content is projected, to the target location, and

control the at least three of the four active elements, to output the guiding operation, to simultaneously be activated at the non-zero intensities based on the perceptual strength of each tactile output signal, and

the depth distance is in a direction orthogonal to the display screen region.

2. The information processing apparatus of claim 1, wherein the processing circuit determines whether to output the control signal to the perceptual active element based on a predetermined guiding condition.

3. The information processing apparatus of claim 1, further comprising:

a memory that stores predetermined guiding conditions corresponding to the 3D content.

4. The information processing apparatus of claim 3, wherein the processing circuit determines whether to output the control signal to the perceptual active element based on the predetermined guiding conditions stored in the memory.

5. The information processing apparatus of claim 1, wherein the processing circuit determines the direction to be browsed next by identifying a browsing start location within the 3D content.

6. The information processing apparatus of claim 5, further comprising:

a user interface that receives a user input, wherein

the processing circuit identifies the browsing start location based on a user input received via the user interface.

7. The information processing apparatus of claim 5, wherein the processing circuit identifies the browsing start location based on information accompanying the 3D content.

8. The information processing apparatus of claim 1, wherein the processing circuit determines whether a guiding start location of the 3D content is within the display screen region.

9. The information processing apparatus of claim 8, wherein the processing circuit determines to output the control signal to the perceptual active element when the processing circuit determines that the guiding start location of the 3D content is within the display screen region.

10. The information processing apparatus of claim 1, wherein the processing circuit identifies the target location within the 3D content.

11. The information processing apparatus of claim 10, wherein the processing circuit identifies the target location based on information accompanying the 3D content.

12. The information processing apparatus of claim 10, wherein the target location within the 3D content identified by the processing circuit is a location outside of the display screen region.

13. The information processing apparatus of claim 10, wherein the processing circuit determines the direction to be browsed next based on the identified target location within the 3D content.

14. The information processing apparatus of claim 1, wherein the processing circuit determines whether to output the control signal to the perceptual active element based on an initial setting regarding whether to perform the guiding operation.

15. The information processing apparatus of claim 1, further comprising:

a user interface configured to receive a user setting as to whether to perform the guiding operation, wherein

the processing circuit determines whether to output the control signal to the perceptual active element based on the user input.

16. The information processing apparatus of claim 1, wherein the four active elements include at least one of vibration elements, heating elements, contraction elements, and electrical stimulation elements.

17. An information processing method performed by an information processing apparatus including a processing circuit and a casing with at least four corners, the method comprising:

controlling, by the processing circuit, a display of the information apparatus to display a portion of three-dimensional (3D) content that fits within a display screen region of the display;

determining, by the processing circuit, a direction to be browsed next as a guiding direction according to a location of portion of the 3D content displayed in the display screen region and a target location of the 3D content to be browsed next;

determining, by the processing circuit, a perceptual strength of a tactile output signal to be output by each of four active elements disposed at different corners of the casing based on the guiding direction, the tactile output signals being output of a guiding operation to a user;

determining, by the processor circuit, non-zero intensities of at least three of the four active elements based on a depth distance of a particular plane, on which the 3D content is projected, to the target location; and

controlling, by the processing circuit when the target location is outside of the display screen region, the at least three of the four active elements to simultaneously be activated at the non-zero intensities so as to output the guiding operation based on the perceptual strength of each tactile output signal, wherein

the depth distance is in a direction orthogonal to the display screen region.

18. A non-transitory computer-readable medium including computer program instructions, which when executed by an information processing apparatus including a processing circuit and a casing with at least four corners, cause the information processing apparatus to perform a method comprising:

controlling a display of the information apparatus to display a portion of three-dimensional (3D) content that fits within a display screen region of the display;

determining a direction to be browsed next as a guiding direction according to a location of portion of the 3D content displayed in the display screen region and a target location of the 3D content to be browsed next;

determining perceptual strength of a tactile output signal to be output by each of four active elements disposed at different corners of the casing based on the guiding direction, the tactile output signals being output of a guiding operation to a user;

determining non-zero intensities of at least three of the four active elements based on a depth distance of a particular plane, on which the 3D content is projected, to the target location; and

controlling, when the target location is outside of the display screen region, the at least three of the four active elements to simultaneously be activated at the non-zero intensities so as to output the guiding operation based on the perceptual strength of each tactile output signal, wherein

the depth distance is in a direction orthogonal to the display screen region.