Character-String Completion

• US 20130205242A1
• Filed: 02/06/2013
• Published: 08/08/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 02/06/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Michael K. Colby
• Inventors: Colby, Michael K.
• Granted Patent: US 9,557,890 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 715/773
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0236 using selection techniques to select from displayed items
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0237 using prediction or retrieval techniques
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0482 Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/274 Converting codes to words; Guess-ahead of partial word inputs

Abstract

This disclosure describes techniques enabling character-string completion. These techniques present characters and character strings responsive to a selected prior character and enable selection of one of these characters or character strings quickly, easily, and/or accurately.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

presenting, based on a selected character selected through a first portion of a single, continuous gesture, multiple character strings representing later parts of words or acronyms of which the selected character is a prior part;

enabling selection, through a second portion of the single, continuous gesture, to select one of the multiple character strings;

receiving selection of one of the multiple character strings through the second portion of the single, continuous gesture; and

providing the selected one of the multiple character strings or the word or acronym of which the selected one of the multiple character strings represents later parts.

2. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the selected character is received from an application associated with a gesture-sensitive character-entry interface and at a second application, the second application presenting the multiple character strings in a second user interface and partially obscuring the gesture-sensitive character-entry interface.

3. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the single, continuous gesture is a substantially-straight line.

4. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the second portion of the single, continuous gesture has a first part and a second part, the first part selecting a first character of the multiple character strings and the second part selecting to complete one of multiple character strings.

5. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein enabling selection through the second portion of the single, continuous gesture enables selection through a straight line from a starting point at a key of a gesture-sensitive character-entry interface, the starting point at a tap made through the first portion and the straight line being the second portion.

6. The method as recited in claim 1, further comprising indicating that one of the multiple character strings is a default character string and enabling selection of the default character string through a particular identifiable gesture portion of the single, continuous gesture.

7. A system comprising:

one or more processors; and

memory having one or more instructions stored thereon that, responsive to execution by the one or more processors, causes the one or more processors to perform operations comprising;

receiving an indication indicating selection of a character, the selection of the character through a portion of a single, continuous gesture received through a gesture-sensitive character-entry interface;

presenting or causing presentation of, responsive to the selection of the character, based on the character, and prior to completion of the single, continuous gesture, multiple characters in a user interface superimposed over at least a portion of the gesture-sensitive character-entry interface or adjacent a location at which the character was selected, the multiple characters continuing a character string of which the character is a prior part;

enabling selection, through a later portion of the single, continuous gesture, to select one of the multiple characters;

receiving selection of one of the multiple characters through the later portion of the single, continuous gesture; and

providing or presenting the selected one of the multiple characters.

8. The system of claim 7, the operations further comprising:

presenting or causing presentation of, responsive to the selection of the selected one of the multiple characters, based on the selected one of the multiple characters, and prior to completion of the single, continuous gesture, second multiple characters in a second user interface superimposed adjacent another location at which the selected one of the multiple characters was selected, the second multiple characters continuing the character string of which the selected one of the multiple characters and the character selected through the gesture-sensitive character-entry interface are prior parts;

enabling selection, through a still later portion of the single, continuous gesture, to select one of the second multiple characters; and

receiving selection of one of the second multiple characters through the still later portion of the single, continuous gesture, and

wherein providing or presenting the selected one of the multiple characters further provides or presents the selected one of the second multiple characters.

9. The system of claim 7, wherein presenting or causing presentation is responsive to determining that the gesture has not ended or indicates selection of the user interface.

10. The system of claim 7, wherein providing or presenting is responsive to receiving an indication that the single, continuous gesture is complete.

11. The system of claim 7, wherein the indication is received from a first application associated with the gesture-sensitive character-entry interface and at a second application, the second application presenting the multiple characters in the user interface and providing or presenting the selected one of the multiple characters provides the selected one of the multiple characters to the first application.

12. The system of claim 7, wherein the gesture-sensitive character-entry interface includes a control, selection of which selects a set of characters, and the operations further comprising, prior to receiving the indication indicating selection of the character:

receiving a prior indication indicating selection of the set of characters;

presenting or causing presentation of, responsive to the selection of the set of characters and based on the control that is selected, the set of characters in a prior user interface superimposed adjacent a location of the control;

enabling selection, through a prior portion of the single, continuous gesture, to select one of the set of characters; and

receiving selection of the selected character of the set of characters and through the prior portion of the single, continuous gesture, and

wherein receiving the indication indicating selection of the character indicates the selected character of the set of characters.

13. The system of claim 7, further comprising, responsive to receiving an indication that the single, continuous gesture is complete, providing a grammatical character and removing the user interface.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein the grammatical character is a space, comma, or period inserted after the character string.

15. The system of claim 13, wherein the grammatical character is a language or emphases character altering, or inserted at, a character in the character string.

16. The system of claim 7, wherein presenting the user interface is responsive to an affirmative selection.

17. The system of claim 16, wherein the affirmative selection is a time delay passing during the single, continuous gesture or a gesture portion moving to a location indicating affirmative selection.

18. The system of claim 7, wherein the multiple characters or the user interface are partially opaque.

19. The system of claim 7, wherein the multiple characters are determined based on words of a language, acronyms or text strings of the language, words or acronyms or text strings based on a user history, a likelihood of the word or acronym, a size of available screen real estate on which the single, continuous gesture can be made, or lengths of the words of the language.

20. A method comprising:

presenting a first user interface having, and enabling selection of, multiple characters or character strings through a gesture or gesture portion, the multiple characters or character strings presented at least partially obscuring an unselected character entry control of a second user interface and adjacent to or surrounding a selected character entry control of the second user interface; and

responsive to selection of one of the multiple characters or character strings, providing the one of the multiple characters or character strings and ceasing to present at least a portion of the first user interface.

21. The method as recited in claim 20, wherein the selection selects one of the multiple characters, ceasing to present ceases to present the multiple characters other than the selected one of the multiple characters, and further comprising presenting a third user interface, the third user interface having, and enabling selection of, other multiple characters or character strings through another gesture or gesture portion, the other multiple characters or characters strings at least partially obscuring another unselected character entry control of the second user interface and adjacent to or surrounding the selected one of the multiple characters of the first user interface.

22. The method as recited in claim 21, further comprising, responsive to selection of one of the other multiple characters or character strings, providing the selected one of the other multiple characters or character strings and ceasing to present the first user interface and the third user interface.

23. The method as recited in claim 21, wherein the selection is through the gesture portion, the gesture portion a later portion later than a prior portion that selected the selected character entry control of the second user interface, and wherein enabling selection of the multiple characters or characters strings enables selection with the gesture being substantially linear.

24. The method as recited in claim 21, wherein the third user interface enables selection of the one of the other multiple characters or character strings within about forty-five degrees of an angle continuing the gesture of which the gesture portion that selected the selected one of the multiple characters.

25. The method as recited in claim 24, further comprising presenting multiple other interfaces, each of the other interfaces presented responsive to a selection of a character of a prior interface and enabling selection within about forty-five degrees of a direction of an immediately prior gesture portion.

26. The method as recited in claim 20, wherein the multiple characters or character strings are partially opaque effective to enable both the multiple characters or character strings and the unselected character entry control of the second user interface to be visible.