Information processing apparatus for automatically switching between modes based on a position of an inputted drag operation

• US 9,830,069 B2
• Filed: 01/20/2014
• Issued: 11/28/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 01/22/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Casio Computer Company Limited
• Original Assignee: Casio Computer Company Limited
• Inventors: Makino, Tetsuji, Nakagome, Kouichi
• Primary Examiner(s): Pan, Yongjia
• Application Number:
  US14/159,254
• Publication Number:
  US 20140208277A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,408 Days
• Field of Search: None
• 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 3/04845 for image manipulation, e.g. dragging, rotation, expansion or change of colour
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0485 Scrolling or panning
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0488 using a touch-screen or digitiser, e.g. input of commands through traced gestures

Abstract

An information processing apparatus of the present application includes a drawing unit that draws a line on an image in a drawing area displayed in a fixed mode, which displays an image by fixing a position of the image; a judgment unit that judges whether a position of the line during drawing by the drawing unit is positioned on a boundary indicating the drawing area; a mode switching unit that switches from the fixed mode to a predetermined mode other than the fixed mode in a case in which the position during drawing is judged as being positioned on the boundary indicating the drawing area by the judgment unit; and a display control unit that executes control to display the image based on the mode switched by the mode switching unit.

Claims

1. An information processing apparatus comprising:

a display;

a touch screen layered on the display; and

a processor which executes processes comprising;

a drag control process of selectively controlling the information processing apparatus to function in (i) a drag drawing mode in which a drawing image is drawn in a drawing area on the display by way of a drag operation by a user, and (ii) a drag scroll mode in which the drawing image drawn and displayed in the drawing area on the display is scrolled by way of the drag operation on the touch screen by the user;

a judgment process of judging whether a position of the drag operation by the user, while the information processing apparatus is functioning in the drag drawing mode under control of the drag control process, is positioned on a boundary indicating the drawing area; and

a drag mode switching process of automatically switching the drag control process from controlling in the drag drawing mode to controlling in the drag scroll mode without stopping the drag operation in a case in which the position of the drag operation by the user, while the information processing apparatus is functioning in the drag drawing mode under control of the drag control process, is judged in the judgement process to be positioned on the boundary indicating the drawing area,

wherein the drawing image in the drawing area on the display, drawn by way of the drag operation by the user, follows the drag operation by the user in the drag scroll mode, and the drawing image in the drawing area on the display, drawn by way of the drag operation by the user, is fixed in the drag drawing mode, and

wherein, by way of the drag mode switching process, the drag control process is automatically switched from controlling in the drag scroll mode to controlling in the drag drawing mode when the drawing image in the drawing area on the display is detected to be scrolled by the user to an arbitrary area defined by the user while the information processing apparatus is functioning in the drag scroll mode under control of the drag control process.

2. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein, by way of the drag mode switching process, the drag control process is automatically switched from controlling in the drag scroll mode to controlling in the drag drawing mode in a case in which the position of the drag operation on the touch screen by the user, while the information processing apparatus is functioning in the drag scroll mode under control of the drag control process, is detected to not have been changed for a predetermined period of time.

3. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein, by way of the drag mode switching process, the drag control process is automatically switched from controlling in the drag scroll mode to controlling in the drag drawing mode when touch operations are detected at a plurality of positions of the touch screen while the information processing apparatus is functioning in the drag scroll mode under control of the drag control process.

4. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the arbitrary area defined by the user is one of (i) an area of the display freely set by the user, (ii) a circumferential area of the display, and (iii) a center of a field of view of the display.

5. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein, by way of the drag mode switching process, the drag control process is alternatively switched between the drag scroll mode and the drag drawing mode in response to detection of a continuous two-point touch operation on the touch screen.

6. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein, by way of the drag mode switching process, the drag control process is automatically switched from controlling in the drag scroll mode to controlling in the drag drawing mode in a case in which a touch operation on the touch screen is not detected for a predetermined period of time while the information processing apparatus is functioning in the drag scroll mode under control of the drag control process.

7. An information processing method executed by a processor of an information processing apparatus, the information processing apparatus further comprising a display and a touch screen layered on the display, the processor selectively controlling the information processing apparatus to function in (i) a drag drawing mode in which a drawing image is drawn in a drawing area on the display by way of a drag operation by a user, and (ii) a drag scroll mode in which the drawing image drawn and displayed in the drawing area on the display is scrolled by way of the drag operation on the touch screen by the user, and the method comprising:

judging whether a position of the drag operation by the user, while the information processing apparatus is functioning in the drag drawing mode under control of the processor, is positioned on a boundary indicating the drawing area; and

automatically switching from controlling in the drag drawing mode to controlling in the drag scroll mode without stopping the drag operation in a case in which the position of the drag operation by the user, while the information processing apparatus is functioning in the drag drawing mode under control of the processor, is judged to be positioned on the boundary indicating the drawing area,

wherein the drawing image in the drawing area on the display, drawn by way of the drag operation by the user, follows the drag operation by the user in the drag scroll mode, and the drawing image in the drawing area on the display, drawn by way of the drag operation by the user, is fixed in the drag drawing mode, and

wherein the processor automatically switches from controlling in the drag scroll mode to controlling in the drag drawing mode when the drawing image in the drawing area on the display is detected to be scrolled by the user to an arbitrary area defined by the user while the information processing apparatus is functioning in the drag scroll mode under control of the processor.

8. A non-transitory storage medium encoded with a computer-readable program for controlling a processor of an information processing apparatus, the information processing apparatus further comprising a display and a touch screen layered on the display, and the program being executable by the processor to control the processor to execute processes comprising:

a drag control process of selectively controlling the information processing apparatus to function in (i) a drag drawing mode in which a drawing image is drawn in a drawing area on the display by way of a drag operation by a user, and (ii) a drag scroll mode in which the drawing image drawn and displayed in the drawing area on the display is scrolled by way of the drag operation on the touch screen by the user;

a judgment process of judging whether a position of the drag operation by the user, while the information processing apparatus is functioning in the drag drawing mode under control of the drag control process, is positioned on a boundary indicating the drawing area; and

a drag mode switching process of automatically switching the drag control process from controlling in the drag drawing mode to controlling in the drag scroll mode without stopping the drag operation in a case in which the position of the drag operation by the user, while the information processing apparatus is functioning in the drag drawing mode under control of the drag control process, is judged in the judgement process to be positioned on the boundary indicating the drawing area,

wherein the drawing image in the drawing area on the display, drawn by way of the drag operation by the user, follows the drag operation by the user in the drag scroll mode, and the drawing image in the drawing area on the display, drawn by way of the drag operation by the user, is fixed in the drag drawing mode, and

wherein, by way of the drag mode switching process, the drag control process is automatically switched from controlling in the drag scroll mode to controlling in the drag drawing mode when the drawing image in the drawing area on the display is detected to be scrolled by the user to an arbitrary area defined by the user while the information processing apparatus is functioning in the drag scroll mode under control of the drag control process.