MULTI-SCREEN PINCH AND EXPAND GESTURES

• US 20110209100A1
• Filed: 02/25/2010
• Published: 08/25/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 02/25/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Hinckley, Kenneth P., Yatani, Koji
• Granted Patent: US 8,539,384 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 715/863
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1641 the display being formed by a plurality of foldable display components G06F1/1647 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1647 including at least an additional display G06F1/1692 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1698 the I/O peripheral being a sending/receiving arrangement to establish a cordless communication link, e.g. radio or infrared link, integrated cellular phone details of antennas disposed inside a computer H01Q1/2266
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04806 Zoom, i.e. interaction techniques or interactors for controlling the zooming operation
• 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 3/0483 Interaction with page-structured environments, e.g. book metaphor
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04883 for inputting data by handwriting, e.g. gesture or text

Abstract

Embodiments of multi-screen pinch and expand gestures are described. In various embodiments, a first input is recognized at a first screen of a multi-screen system, and the first input includes a first motion input. A second input is recognized at a second screen of the multi-screen system, and the second input includes a second motion input. A pinch gesture or an expand gesture can then be determined from the first and second motion inputs that are associated with the recognized first and second inputs.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method, comprising:

recognizing a first input at a first screen of a multi-screen system, the first input including a first motion input;

recognizing a second input at a second screen of the multi-screen system, the second input including a second motion input; and

determining at least one of a pinch gesture or an expand gesture from the first and second motion inputs that are associated with the recognized first and second inputs.

2. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein the pinch gesture is identified as a cross-screen combination of the first and second inputs when the first and second motion inputs are effective to condense a displayed object.

3. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein the expand gesture is identified as a cross-screen combination of the first and second inputs when the first and second motion inputs are effective to expand a displayed object.

4. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein the pinch gesture is determined based on the first and second motion inputs that decrease a distance between the first and second inputs.

5. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein the expand gesture is determined based on the first and second motion inputs that increase a distance between the first and second inputs.

6. A method as recited in claim 1, further comprising recognizing that a distance between the first and second inputs changes with the first and second motion inputs.

7. A method as recited in claim 6, further comprising recognizing that the change is a decrease in the distance that is determined as the pinch gesture, which gives the appearance of zooming-out when a displayed object is condensed.

8. A method as recited in claim 6, further comprising recognizing that the change is an increase in the distance that is determined as the expand gesture, which gives the appearance of zooming-in when a displayed object is expanded.

9. A multi-screen system, comprising:

at least a memory and a processor to implement a gesture module configured to determine at least one of a pinch gesture or an expand gesture from motion inputs associated with recognized first and second inputs;

an input recognition system configured to;

recognize the first input at a first screen, the first input including a first motion input; and

recognize the second input at a second screen, the second input including a second motion input and the second input being recognized approximately when the first input is recognized.

10. A multi-screen system as recited in claim 9, wherein the gesture module is further configured to identify the pinch gesture as a cross-screen combination of the first and second inputs effective to condense a displayed object based on the motion inputs that correlate to the first and second inputs.

11. A multi-screen system as recited in claim 9, wherein the gesture module is further configured to identify the expand gesture as a cross-screen combination of the first and second inputs effective to expand a displayed object based on the motion inputs that correlate to the first and second inputs.

12. A multi-screen system as recited in claim 9, wherein the gesture module is further configured to determine the pinch gesture from the motion inputs that decrease a distance between the first and second inputs.

13. A multi-screen system as recited in claim 9, wherein the gesture module is further configured to determine the expand gesture from the motion inputs that increase a distance between the first and second inputs.

14. A multi-screen system as recited in claim 9, wherein the input recognition system is further configured to recognize that a distance between the first and second inputs changes with the motion inputs.

15. A multi-screen system as recited in claim 14, wherein the gesture module is further configured to determine the pinch gesture when the change is a decrease in the distance between the first and second inputs, which gives the appearance of zooming-out when a displayed object is condensed.

16. A multi-screen system as recited in claim 14, wherein the gesture module is further configured to determine the expand gesture when the change is an increase in the distance between the first and second inputs, which gives the appearance of zooming-in when a displayed object is expanded.

17. Computer-readable storage media comprising instructions that are executable and, responsive to executing the instructions, a multi-screen system is initiated to:

recognize a first input at a first screen of the multi-screen system, the first input including a first motion input;

recognize a second input at a second screen of the multi-screen system, the second input including a second motion input; and

determine at least one of a pinch gesture or an expand gesture from the first and second motion inputs that are associated with the recognized first and second inputs.

18. Computer-readable storage media as recited in claim 17, further comprising additional instructions that are executable and, responsive to executing the additional instructions, the multi-screen system is further initiated to determine the pinch gesture from the first and second motion inputs that decrease a distance between the first and second inputs.

19. Computer-readable storage media as recited in claim 17, further comprising additional instructions that are executable and, responsive to executing the additional instructions, the multi-screen system is further initiated to determine the expand gesture from the first and second motion inputs that increase a distance between the first and second inputs.

20. Computer-readable storage media as recited in claim 17, further comprising additional instructions that are executable and, responsive to executing the additional instructions, the multi-screen system is further initiated to:

determine the pinch gesture, which gives the appearance of zooming-out when a displayed object is condensed, when the first and second motion inputs decrease a distance between the first and second inputs; and

determine the expand gesture, which gives the appearance of zooming-in when a displayed object is expanded, when the first and second motion inputs increase a distance between the first and second inputs.