Touch Interaction with a Curved Display

• US 20100020026A1
• Filed: 12/26/2008
• Published: 01/28/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 07/25/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Wilson, Andrew D., Benko, Hrvoje, Chen, Billy, Balakrishnan, Ravin, Baudisch, Patrick M.
• Granted Patent: US 9,218,116 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 345/173
• 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 3/041 Digitisers, e.g. for touch screens or touch pads, characterised by the transducing means
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/042 by opto-electronic means
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0486 Drag-and-drop
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0488 using a touch-screen or digitiser, e.g. input of commands through traced gestures
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04883 for inputting data by handwriting, e.g. gesture or text

Abstract

Touch interaction with a curved display (e.g., a sphere, a hemisphere, a cylinder, etc.) is enabled through various user interface (UI) features. In an example embodiment, a curved display is monitored to detect a touch input. If a touch input is detected based on the act of monitoring, then one or more locations of the touch input are determined. Responsive to the determined one or more locations of the touch input, at least one user UI feature is implemented. Example UI features include an orb-like invocation gesture feature, a rotation-based dragging feature, a send-to-dark-side interaction feature, and an object representation and manipulation by proxy representation feature.

Claims

1. A method that is implemented by a device for touch interaction with a curved display, the method comprising acts of:

monitoring a curved display to detect a touch input;

if a touch input is detected based on the act of monitoring,

determining one or more locations of the touch input; and

implementing at least one user interface (UI) feature responsive to the determined one or more locations of the touch input using a rotation that is associated with an axis and an angle, the rotation representing an arc over the curved display.

2. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the act of implementing comprises implementing a rotation-based drag of an object by performing acts of:

finding an original point on the curved display where a drag of the object begins;

finding an ending point on the curved display where the drag of the object terminates;

computing the rotation for movement between the original point and the ending point; and

applying the rotation to the object to effect a dragged movement of the object.

3. The method as recited in claim 1, further comprising acts of:

checking if there is a touch contact on an object for a first touch contact criteria, the object on one side of the curved display;

checking if the touch contact meets a predefined size threshold for a second touch contact criteria;

checking if the touch contact is static to a predefined threshold for a third touch contact criteria;

checking if the first, second, and third touch contact criteria are met for a predefined temporal threshold; and

if the first, second, and third touch contact criteria are met for the predefined temporal threshold, warping the object to another side of the curved display.

4. The method as recited in claim 1, further comprising acts of:

displaying a proxy representation for a corresponding object;

detecting if the proxy representation is subjected to at least one manipulation; and

if the proxy representation is detected to be subjected to at least one manipulation, reflecting the manipulation of the proxy representation in the corresponding object.

5. The method as recited in claim 1, further comprising acts of:

displaying a proxy representation for a corresponding object;

detecting if a send-to-dark-side interaction is activated with regard to the proxy representation or the corresponding object; and

if a send-to-dark-side interaction is detected to be activated, swapping locations between the proxy representation and the corresponding object.

6. The method as recited in claim 1, further comprising acts of:

checking if there are multiple touch contacts on a surface of the curved display;

checking if the multiple touch contacts include at least two large touch contacts that meet a predefined size threshold;

checking if positions of the at least two large touch contacts are substantially symmetric around a fixed point on the curved display; and

if each of the acts of checking produces an affirmative result, performing an invocation of a mode switch or a menu presentation.

7. One or more processor-accessible tangible media comprising processor-executable instructions for enabling touch interaction with a curved display, wherein the processor-executable instructions, when executed, direct a device to perform acts comprising:

monitoring a curved display to detect a touch input;

if a touch input is detected based on the act of monitoring,

determining one or more locations of the touch input; and

implementing at least one user interface (UI) feature responsive to the determined one or more locations of the touch input.

8. The one or more processor-accessible tangible media as recited in claim 7, wherein the processor-executable instructions, when executed, direct the device to perform for the act of implementing a further act comprising:

moving an object around the curved display using a rotation-based mechanism.

9. The one or more processor-accessible tangible media as recited in claim 7, wherein the processor-executable instructions, when executed, direct the device to perform for the act of implementing a further act comprising:

warping an object that is displayed on one side of the curved display to another side of the curved display responsive to detection of a touch contact on the object if the touch contact meets a predefined size threshold for a predefined temporal threshold.

10. The one or more processor-accessible tangible media as recited in claim 7, wherein the processor-executable instructions, when executed, direct the device to perform for the act of implementing a further act comprising:

invoking an interaction feature responsive to detection of two touch contacts if the two touch contacts meet a predefined size threshold and are substantially symmetric around a fixed point.

11. The one or more processor-accessible tangible media as recited in claim 7, wherein the processor-executable instructions, when executed, direct the device to perform for the act of implementing further acts comprising:

displaying a proxy representation for a corresponding object, the proxy representation and the corresponding object presented on different sides of the curved display; and

reflecting in the corresponding object user manipulations of the proxy representation.

12. A device that enables touch interaction with a curved display, the device comprising:

a curved display; and

a processing unit including a detection unit and an interaction unit;

the detection unit to monitor the curved display to detect a touch input and to determine one or more locations of the touch input, the interaction unit to implement at least one user interface (UI) feature responsive to the determined one or more locations of the touch input.

13. The device as recited in claim 12, wherein the curved display is spherical, hemispherical, cuboidal, or cylindrical.

14. The device as recited in claim 12, further comprising:

a display component including a projection component and a detection component;

the projection component adapted to project images onto the curved display, and the detection component adapted to detect the one or more locations of the touch input on the curved display;

wherein the curved display has an interior and an exterior, with objects that are displayed visible from the exterior of the curved display; and

wherein the processing unit further includes a projection unit to instruct the projection component to display objects in accordance with the implemented at least one UI feature.

15. The device as recited in claim 12, wherein the detection unit is to detect whether a finger-sized or a palm-sized touch input is occurring at the curved display by detecting a size of the touch input and comparing the size of the detected touch input to a predetermined size threshold;

and wherein the interaction unit is to implement the at least one UI feature based on whether the detected touch input is finger-sized or palm-sized.

16. The device as recited in claim 12, wherein the interaction unit comprises a rotation-based dragging unit that is to enable object movement around the curved display by rotating dragged objects to represent an arc of movement between an original point where a drag begins and an ending point where the drag terminates.

17. The device as recited in claim 12, wherein the interaction unit comprises a send-to-dark-side interaction unit to warp objects from one side of the curved display to another side of the curved display responsive to detection of a touch contact that meet a predefined size threshold on objects for a predefined temporal threshold.

18. The device as recited in claim 12, wherein the curved display is spherical or hemispherical;

wherein the interaction unit comprises an orb-like invocation gesture unit to present a menu or switch modes responsive to detection of at least two touch contacts that meet a predefined size threshold and that are substantially symmetric around a fixed point of the curved display; and

wherein the orb-like invocation gesture unit enables selection of an option on the menu by rotating the menu in place.

19. The device as recited in claim 12, wherein the interaction unit comprises an object representation and manipulation by proxy representation unit to display a proxy representation for a corresponding object and to enable the corresponding object to be manipulated by user manipulation of the proxy representation.

20. The device as recited in claim 19, wherein a location of the proxy representation and a location of the corresponding object may be swapped upon activation of a send-to-dark-side interaction mechanism that warps proxy representations and their corresponding objects across the curved display.