Interactive Content for Digital Books

• US 20130073932A1
• Filed: 08/17/2012
• Published: 03/21/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 08/19/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Inventors: Migos, Charles J., Bauducco, Diego, Hagele, Markus, Capela, Jay Christopher, Hall, David M., Elseth, Paul, Rosner, Roger Rock, MacLean, Alexander C., Murrett, Mac, Gehiere, Gary W., Refstrup, Jacob G., Rudolph, Christopher Erich, Rapp, Peter W., Berger, Peter G., Ward, Simon Antony, Ambachtsheer, Mark, Israelson, Steven J., Gur, Yaniv, Emanuel, M. Frank
• Granted Patent: US 9,766,782 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 715/201
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 15/0291 for reading, e.g. e-books constructional details of portable computers G06F1/1613
• 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: G09B 5/02 with visual presentation of the material to be studied, e.g. using film strip

Abstract

This disclosure describes systems, methods, and computer program products for presenting interactive content for digital books. In some implementations, a graphical user interface (GUI) is presented that allows a user to view and interact with content embedded in a digital book. The interactive content can include, but is not limited to, text, image galleries, multimedia presentations, video, HTML, animated and static diagrams, charts, tables, visual dictionaries, review questions, three-dimensional (3D) animation and any other known media content. For example, various touch gestures can be used by the user to move through images and multimedia presentations, play video, answer review questions, manipulate three-dimensional objects, and interact with HTML.

Claims

1. A method of presenting interactive content in a digital book, the method comprising:

displaying text and an image on an interface associated with a digital book, the image including one or more callouts containing terms corresponding to portions of the image;

receiving input associated with the image;

zooming in on a portion of the image; and

displaying a definition corresponding to a term associated with the portion of the image.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving input associated with the image comprises receiving a selection of a callout corresponding to the term.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving input associated with the image comprises receiving a selection of the portion of the image.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein displaying a definition corresponding to the term comprises expanding a callout associated with the term and displaying the definition in the callout with the term

5. The method of claim 1, wherein displaying a definition corresponding to the term comprises displaying the definition in a sidebar proximate to the image.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving input associated with the image comprises receiving a selection of a graphical element associated with the term.

7. A method of presenting a glossary in a digital book, the method comprising:

obtaining user input identifying a glossary term associated with the digital book; and

displaying, in a single user interface, a definition of the glossary term and a list of locations where the glossary term is recited in the digital book.

8. The method of claim 7, further comprising:

receiving a selection of a location in the list of locations in the single user interface; and

displaying content corresponding to the location in the digital book.

9. The method of claim 7, further comprising:

displaying, in the single user interface, a list of related glossary terms.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

receiving a selection of a related glossary term in the list of related glossary terms; and

displaying, in the single user interface, a definition of the related glossary term and a list of locations where the related glossary term is recited in the digital book.

11. The method of claim 7, wherein obtaining user input identifying a glossary term comprises:

displaying text associated with the digital book; and

receiving a selection of a glossary term from the text.

12. The method of claim 7, wherein obtaining user input identifying a glossary term comprises:

receiving a search query including a search term;

performing a search based on the search query;

presenting search results indicating that the search term is a glossary term; and

receiving user input selecting the glossary term from the search results.

13. A method for presenting multi-dimensional content in a digital book, the method comprising:

displaying an interactive element within text of the digital book, the interactive element configured to present a multi-dimensional image;

receiving user input to the interactive element and associated with the multi-dimensional image, the multi-dimensional image having a first orientation;

responsive to the user input, presenting an animation of the multi-dimensional image that causes the multi-dimensional image to appear to gradually change from the first orientation to a second orientation.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the first orientation and the second orientation present different views of the multi-dimensional image.

15. The method of claim 13, wherein the multi-dimensional animation causes the multi-dimensional image to appear to rotate.

16. A method for presenting review questions in a digital book, the method comprising:

obtaining review question data associated with at least a portion of the digital book;

presenting a first review question on a first page of a review interactive element;

receiving user input indicating an answer for the first question; and

presenting a second review question on a second page of a review interactive element.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the review interactive element is embedded in-line with text in the digital book.

18. The method of claim 16, wherein receiving user input comprises receiving a selection of text.

19. The method of claim 16, wherein receiving user input comprises receiving a selection of an image.

20. The method of claim 16, wherein receiving user input comprises performing a drag-and-drop operation with respect to a selected object.

21. A method comprising:

displaying a table of contents for a digital book, the table of contents having a plurality of items of content;

receiving a de-pinch touch gesture input associated with an item of content in the table of contents;

determining a portion of content to be displayed based on the de-pinch gesture; and

displaying the portion of content.

22. The method of claim 21, further comprising:

determining a first touch point and a second touch point based on the de-pinch touch gesture input;

calculating a distance between the first touch point and the second touch point; and

determining the portion of content to be displayed based at least in part on the distance.

23. The method of claim 21, wherein displaying the portion of content comprises displaying the portion of content in-line with the items of content in the table of contents.

24. The method of claim 21, wherein displaying the portion of content comprises closing the table of contents.

25. The method of claim 21, further comprising displaying the portion of content at a location in the table of contents corresponding to the de-pinch gesture.