Touch-Screen Keyboard Facilitating Touch Typing with Minimal Finger Movement

• US 20130009881A1
• Filed: 07/06/2011
• Published: 01/10/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 07/06/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Google Inc. (Alphabet Inc.)
• Inventors: PAUL, Sean
• Granted Patent: US 8,754,861 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 345/173
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04883 for inputting data by handwriting, e.g. gesture or text
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04886 by partitioning the display area of the touch-screen or the surface of the digitising tablet into independently controllable areas, e.g. virtual keyboards or menus

Abstract

A system, method and computer-readable medium for using a touch-screen keyboard. A keyboard operation module generates geometric shapes for display on a touch-screen display, each geometric Shape corresponding to a respective finger of a user. Each geometric shape includes characters at predefined locations around the perimeter of the geometric shape. The keyboard operation module detects a sliding movement of a finger in contact with the touch-screen display from inside a geometric Shape and toward the perimeter of the geometric shape. The keyboard operation module then determines that the sliding movement is in the direction of a particular character positioned around the perimeter of the geometric Shape and selects the particular character for display in a text entry area of the touch-screen display.

Claims

1-20. -20. (canceled)

21. A computer-implemented method comprising:

generating a plurality of geometric shapes for display on a touch-screen display of a computing device, each shape corresponding to a respective finger of a user;

positioning, on the touch-screen display, a plurality of characters at predefined locations inside a perimeter of each shape,

wherein the plurality of characters inside the perimeter of each shape are associated with a particular finger and positioned without overlapping with the remaining geometric shapes, and

wherein the positioning corresponds to the plurality of characters on a conventional two-handed QWERTY keyboard associated with a typing pattern of the particular finger;

detecting a sliding movement of a finger in contact with the touch-screen display from inside a particular one of the geometric shapes toward one of the plurality of characters positioned inside the perimeter of the particular shape;

determining that the sliding, movement is in the direction of a particular one of the plurality of characters positioned inside the perimeter of the particular geometric shape; and

based on the sliding, selecting the particular character for display in a text entry area of the touch-screen display.

25. The method of claim 21, further comprising:

detecting a sliding movement of one or more fingers of the user in contact with the touch-screen display; and

in response to the detecting, determining a new location for each shape on the touch-screen display.

26. The method of claim 21, further comprising centering the respective shape around a respective finger when one or more fingers are placed on the touch-screen display.

27. The method of claim 21, further comprising:

positioning a phrase at a predefined location around the perimeter of the particular shape;

determining that the sliding movement is in the direction of the phrase positioned around the perimeter of the particular shape; and

selecting the phrase for display in the text entry area of the touch-screen display.

22. (canceled)

23. (canceled)

24. (Canceled)

28. A system for generating a keyboard on a touch-screen display of a computing device, comprising:

a touch screen display configured to display one or more characters in a text entry area; and

a keyboard operation module configured to;

generate a plurality of geometric shapes for display on the touch-screen display, wherein each shape corresponds to a respective finger of a user;

position, on the touch-screen display, a plurality of characters at predefined locations inside a perimeter of each shape,

wherein the plurality of characters inside the perimeter of each shape are associated with a particular finger and positioned without overlapping with the remaining geometric shapes, and

wherein the positioning corresponds to the plurality of characters on a conventional two-handed QWERTY keyboard associated with a typing pattern of the particular finger;

detect a sliding movement of a finger in contact with the touch-screen display from inside a particular one of the geometric shapes toward one of the plurality of characters positioned inside the perimeter of the particular shape;

determine that the sliding movement is in the direction of a particular one of the plurality of characters positioned inside the perimeter of the particular geometric shape; and

select the particular character for display in a text entry area of the touch-screen display, wherein the character is selected based on the sliding movement.

32. The system of claim 28, wherein the keyboard operation module is further configured to:

detect a sliding movement of one or more fingers of the user in contact with the touch-screen display; and

in response to the detecting, determine a new location for each shape on the touch-screen display.

33. The system of claim 28, wherein the keyboard operation module is further configured to:

position a phrase at a predefined location around the perimeter of the particular shape;

determine that the sliding movement is in the direction of the phrase positioned around the perimeter of the particular shape; and

select the phrase for display in the text entry area of the touch-screen display.

29. (canceled)

30. (canceled)

31. (canceled)