Virtual keyboard based activation and dismissal

• US 8,358,277 B2
• Filed: 03/18/2008
• Issued: 01/22/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 03/18/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Mosby, Timothy J, Wiswell, Christian N
• Primary Examiner(s): Lao, Lun-Yi
• Assistant Examiner(s): Abebe, Sosina
• Application Number:
  US12/050,171
• Publication Number:
  US 20090237361A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,771 Days
• Field of Search: 345/173, 345/169, 345/172, 345/174, 463/37, 715/773
• 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 3/02 Input arrangements using manually operated switches, e.g. using keyboards or dials
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/041 Digitisers, e.g. for touch screens or touch pads, characterised by the transducing means
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04883 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 virtual keyboard apparatus and method for forming the virtual keyboard apparatus are provided. The virtual keyboard apparatus may include a touch-sensitive display surface configured to detect a touch signal including at least a finger touch and a palm touch by a hand of a user, and a controller configured to generate a virtual keyboard having a layout determined based at least in part on a distance between the detected palm touch and the detected finger touch. The method for generating a virtual keyboard may include detecting with a touch-sensitive display surface a touch signal including at least a finger touch and a palm touch formed by a hand of a user, and generating a virtual keyboard having a layout based at least in part on a distance between the detected palm touch and the detected finger touch.

Claims

1. A virtual keyboard apparatus, comprising:

a touch-sensitive display surface configured to detect a touch signal including at least a finger touch and a palm touch by a hand of a user; and

a controller configured to determine a distance between the detected palm touch and the detected finger touch and to generate a virtual keyboard to be displayed on the touch-sensitive display surface, the virtual keyboard having a layout selected from a plurality of different layouts, the selected layout determined based at least in part on the distance between the detected palm touch and the detected finger touch.

2. The virtual keyboard apparatus of claim 1, wherein the controller is further configured to determine whether a home row gesture is included in the detected touch signal, based at least in part on whether the touch signal includes a predetermined collection of one or more palm touches and one or more finger touches forming the home row gesture, the predetermined collection including the detected palm touch and the detected finger touch, and wherein the controller is further configured to generate the virtual keyboard based on detecting the home row gesture.

3. The virtual keyboard apparatus of claim 2, wherein the controller is further configured to determine whether the home row gesture is included in the detected touch signal, based further on whether the collection of one or more palm touches and one or more finger touches forming the home row gesture have persisted for at least a predetermined amount of time set for forming the home row gesture.

4. The virtual keyboard apparatus of claim 2,

wherein the finger touch is a finger touch of a first hand and the palm touch is a palm touch of a first hand;

wherein the detected home row gesture further includes a palm touch and a finger touch of an opposing hand of the user; and

wherein the selected layout of the virtual keyboard is further based on a distance between the detected palm touch and the detected finger touch of the opposing hand of the user.

5. The virtual keyboard apparatus of claim 2, wherein the controller is configured to position the virtual keyboard over the detected finger touch so that a home row of the virtual keyboard is formed over the detected home row finger gesture.

6. The virtual keyboard apparatus of claim 1, wherein the controller is configured to:

measure an angle formed between a palm-to-finger line and a finger-to-finger line, wherein the palm-to-finger line connects the detected finger touch and the detected palm touch, and wherein the finger-to-finger line connects respective finger touches detected by the touch-sensitive display surface; and

generate the virtual keyboard with the selected layout that is further based on the measured angle.

7. The virtual keyboard apparatus of claim 6, wherein the selected layout of the virtual keyboard is further determined based on a distance of the finger-to-finger line.

8. The virtual keyboard apparatus of claim 6, wherein the respective finger touches of the finger-to-finger line are finger touches selected from the group consisting of an index finger touch, middle finger touch, and ring finger touch of the hand.

9. The virtual keyboard apparatus of claim 1,

wherein the touch-sensitive display surface is configured to detect a dismissal gesture;

and

wherein the controller is configured to dismiss the virtual keyboard based on the detected dismissal gesture.

10. The virtual keyboard apparatus of claim 9, wherein the detected dismissal gesture is formed by simultaneously dragging a pair of opposing hands of the user across the touch-sensitive surface.

11. A method for generating a virtual keyboard, comprising:

detecting with a touch-sensitive display surface a touch signal including at least a finger touch and a palm touch formed by a hand of a user;

determining a distance between the detected palm touch and the detected finger touch; and

generating a virtual keyboard to be positioned over the detected touch signal and displayed on the touch-sensitive display surface, the virtual keyboard having a layout selected from a plurality of different layouts, the selected layout based at least in part on the distance between the detected palm touch and the detected finger touch.

12. The method of claim 11, further comprising:

determining whether a home row gesture is included in the detected touch signal, based at least in part on whether the touch signal includes a predetermined collection of one or more palm touches and one or more finger touches forming the home row gesture, the predetermined collection including the detected palm touch and the detected finger touch, and wherein generating the virtual keyboard is based on detecting the home row gesture.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein determining whether the home row gesture is included in the touch signal further includes determining whether the collection of one or more palm touches and one or more finger touches forming the home row gesture have persisted for at least a predetermined amount of time set for forming the home row gesture.

14. The method of claim 12,

wherein the finger touch and the palm touch are a finger touch and a palm touch of a first hand of the user;

wherein the detected home row gesture further includes a palm touch and a finger touch of an opposing hand of the user; and

wherein the selected layout of the virtual keyboard is further based on a distance between the detected palm touch and finger touch of the opposing hand of the user.

15. The virtual keyboard of claim 11, further comprising:

measuring an angle formed between a palm-to-finger line and a finger-to-finger line, wherein the palm-to-finger line connects the detected finger touch and the detected palm touch, and wherein the finger-to-finger line connects respective finger touches detected by the touch-sensitive display surface; and

generating the virtual keyboard with the selected layout that is further based on the measured angle.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the respective finger touches of the finger-to-finger line are finger touches selected from the group consisting of an index finger touch, middle finger touch, and ring finger touch of the hand.

17. The virtual keyboard of claim 11, further comprising:

generating the virtual keyboard with the selected layout that is further based on a distance of the finger-to-finger line.

18. The method of claim 11, further comprising:

detecting a dismissal gesture with the touch-sensitive display surface; and

dismissing the virtual keyboard based on the detected dismissal gesture.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein the detected dismissal gesture is formed by simultaneously dragging a pair of opposing hands of the user across the touch-sensitive surface.