Inadvertent dismissal prevention for graphical content

• US 9,977,578 B1
• Filed: 03/17/2015
• Issued: 05/22/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 08/19/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Inventors: Pereira, Mindy, Shiplacoff, Daniel Marc Gatan, Renouf, Mark Thomas, Burns, Ned
• Primary Examiner(s): Nguyen, Phuong H
• Application Number:
  US14/660,496
• Time in Patent Office: 1,162 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0483 Interaction with page-structured environments, e.g. book metaphor
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04842 Selection of displayed objects or displayed text elements G06F3/0482 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0485 Scrolling or panning
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04883 for inputting data by handwriting, e.g. gesture or text

Abstract

A computing device includes at least one processor; a display device; and at least one module. The at least one processor may be operable to store data that defines a plurality of discrete graphical elements (DGE'"'"'s), wherein the plurality of DGE'"'"'s includes at least one root DGE, and wherein dismissal of the root DGE causes dismissal of all of the plurality of DGE'"'"'s. The at least one module may be operable to output a particular DGE of the plurality of DGE'"'"'s; output, for display, the root DGE, responsive to receiving a first indication of user input of a particular input type; and ignore the second indication of user input to refrain from dismissal of the root DGE, responsive to receiving a second indication of user input of the particular input type within a threshold time duration that is initiated responsive to outputting the root DGE.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

storing, by a computing device, data that defines a plurality of discrete graphical elements, wherein the computing device is configured to allow, in a user interface and for each respective discrete graphical element of the plurality of discrete graphical elements, direct navigation from the respective discrete graphical element to at least one other respective discrete graphical element of the plurality of discrete graphical elements, wherein;

the plurality of discrete graphical elements, includes at least one group of discrete graphical elements including a root discrete graphical element and one or more other discrete graphical elements, and

the computing device dismisses every discrete graphical element of the group of discrete graphical elements in response to dismissal of the root discrete graphical element;

outputting, by the computing device and for display at a display device operatively coupled to the computing device, a particular discrete graphical element of the one or more other discrete graphical elements;

responsive to receiving a first indication of user input of a particular input type that causes the computing device to navigate from the particular discrete graphical element to the root discrete graphical element, outputting, by the computing device and for display at the display device, the root discrete graphical element;

responsive to receiving a second indication of user input of the particular input type within a threshold time duration that is initiated responsive to outputting the root discrete graphical element, refraining from dismissing the root discrete graphical element; and

responsive to receiving the second indication of the user input of the particular input type outside of the threshold time duration, dismissing the root discrete graphical element.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

responsive to receiving, after the first indication of user input and not within the threshold time duration, a third indication of user input of the particular input type, dismissing all of the group of discrete graphical elements.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

responsive to receiving, after the second indication of user input and within the threshold time duration, a third indication of input of the particular input type, dismissing all of the group of discrete graphical elements.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

responsive to outputting the root discrete graphical element, initiating a timer having a start time and an end time, wherein;

the threshold time duration is equal to a difference of time between the start time and the end time, and

the second indication of user input of the particular input type is received between the start time and the end time.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining, by the computing device, at least one characteristic of a third indication of user input;

determining, by the computing device, whether the at least one characteristic satisfies a threshold; and

responsive to determining, by the computing device, that the at least one characteristic does not satisfy the threshold, ignoring the third indication of user input to refrain from dismissal of the root discrete graphical element.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the at least one characteristic is at least one of a speed, a direction, a continuity, an acceleration, a curvature, a duration, an interval of the user input, or a time at which user input occurred.

7. The method of claim 1,

wherein navigating from a first discrete graphical element to a second discrete graphical element causes the computing device to maintain data that represents a state of the first discrete graphical element and remove the first discrete graphical element from display, and

wherein dismissal of the second discrete graphical element causes the computing device to programmatically destroy the second discrete graphical element.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining, by the computing device, a quantity of user inputs received by the computing device;

determining, by the computing device, whether the quantity of user inputs satisfies a threshold quantity; and

wherein ignoring the second indication of user input to refrain from dismissal of the root discrete graphical element further comprises ignoring the second indication of user input to refrain from dismissal of the root discrete graphical element responsive to determining that the quantity of user inputs satisfies a threshold quantity.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the threshold time duration is a first threshold time duration, the method further comprising:

determining, by the computing device, whether the quantity of user inputs satisfies the threshold quantity within a second threshold time duration; and

wherein ignoring the second indication of user input to refrain from dismissal of the root discrete graphical element further comprises ignoring the second indication of user input to refrain from dismissal of the root discrete graphical element responsive to determining that the quantity of user inputs satisfies the threshold quantity within the second threshold time duration.

10. The method of claim 1,

wherein the first indication of user input of the particular input type comprises a first linear gesture in a direction towards a first edge of a presence-sensitive input device, the linear gesture being substantially parallel to a second edge of the presence-sensitive input device that is orthogonal to the first edge, and

wherein the second indication of user input of the particular input type comprises a second linear gesture in the direction towards the first edge of the presence-sensitive input device, the second linear gesture being substantially parallel to the second edge of the presence-sensitive input device that is orthogonal to the first edge.

11. The method of claim 1,

wherein the particular input type is a first input type,

wherein a third indication of user input of a second input type comprises a third linear gesture in a first direction that is opposite to a second direction towards the first edge of the presence-sensitive input device, the third linear gesture being substantially parallel to the second edge of the presence-sensitive input device that is orthogonal to the first edge.

12. A computing device comprising:

at least one processor;

a display device; and

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

store data that defines a plurality of discrete graphical elements,

wherein;

the plurality of discrete graphical elements includes at least one group of discrete graphical elements including a root discrete graphical element and one or more other discrete graphical elements, and the computing device dismisses every discrete graphical element of the group of discrete graphical elements in response to dismissal of the root discrete graphical element;

output for display at the display device operatively coupled to the computing device, a particular discrete graphical element of the one or more other discrete graphical elements;

responsive to receiving a first indication of user input of a particular input type that causes the computing device to navigate from the particular discrete graphical element to the root discrete graphical element, output for display at the display device, the root discrete graphical element;

responsive to receiving a second indication of user input of the particular input type within a threshold time duration that is initiated responsive to outputting the root discrete graphical element, refrain from dismissing the root discrete graphical element; and

responsive to receiving the second indication of the user input of the particular input type outside of the threshold time duration, dismiss the root discrete graphical element.

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

dismiss all of the plurality of discrete graphical elements, responsive to receiving, after the first indication of user input and is not within the threshold time duration, a third indication of user input of the particular input type.

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

responsive to outputting the root discrete graphical element, initiating a timer having a start time and an end time, wherein;

the threshold time duration is equal to a difference of time between the start time and the end time, and

the second indication of user input of the particular input type is received between the start time and the end time.

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

determine at least one characteristic of a third indication of user input;

determine whether the at least one characteristic satisfies a threshold; and

ignore the third indication of user input to refrain from dismissal of the root discrete graphical element, responsive to determining that the at least one characteristic does not satisfy the threshold.

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

store data that defines a plurality of discrete graphical elements, wherein the computing device provides, for each respective discrete graphical element of the plurality of discrete graphical elements, direct navigation from the respective discrete graphical element to at least one other respective discrete graphical element of the plurality of discrete graphical elements, wherein the plurality of discrete graphical elements includes group of discrete graphical elements including a root discrete graphical element and one or more other discrete graphical elements, and wherein the computing device dismisses all of the group of discrete graphical elements in response to dismissing the root discrete graphical element;

output for display at the display device operatively coupled to the computing device, a particular discrete graphical element of the one or more other discrete graphical elements;

responsive to receiving a first indication of user input of a particular input type that causes the computing device to navigate from the particular discrete graphical element to the root discrete graphical element, output for display at the display device, the root discrete graphical element;

responsive to receiving a second indication of user input of the particular input type within a threshold time duration that is initiated responsive to outputting the root discrete graphical element, refrain from dismissing the root discrete graphical element; and

responsive to receiving the second indication of the user input of the particular input type outside of the threshold time duration, dismiss the root discrete graphical element.

17. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 16, further comprising instructions that, when executed, cause at least one processor to:

dismiss all of the plurality of discrete graphical elements, responsive to receiving, after the first indication of user input, a third indication of user input of the particular input type that is not within the threshold time duration.

18. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 16, further comprising instructions that, when executed, cause at least one processor to:

responsive to outputting for display the root discrete graphical element, starting a timer that includes a start time and an end time,

wherein the threshold time duration is equal to a difference of time between the start time and the end time, and

wherein the second indication of user input of the particular input type occurs between the start time and the end time.