User interface gestures

• US 8,384,675 B2
• Filed: 07/03/2006
• Issued: 02/26/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 01/26/1998
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Inventors: Westerman, Wayne Carl, Elias, John G.
• Primary Examiner(s): Pervan, Michael
• Application Number:
  US11/428,515
• Publication Number:
  US 20060238520A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,430 Days
• Field of Search: 345156-173, 178 1801- 1907
• US Class Current: 345/173
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 18/24137 Distances to cluster centroïds
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04101 2.5D-digitiser, i.e. digitiser detecting the X/Y position of the input means, finger or stylus, also when it does not touch, but is proximate to the digitiser's interaction surface and also measures the distance of the input means within a short range in the Z direction, possibly with a separate measurement setup
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04104 Multi-touch detection in digitiser, i.e. details about the simultaneous detection of a plurality of touching locations, e.g. multiple fingers or pen and finger
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04106 Multi-sensing digitiser, i.e. digitiser using at least two different sensing technologies simultaneously or alternatively, e.g. for detecting pen and finger, for saving power or for improving position detection
• 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 3/0235 using chord techniques G06F3/0234 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/041 Digitisers, e.g. for touch screens or touch pads, characterised by the transducing means
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0412 Digitisers structurally integrated in a display
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04166 Details of scanning methods, e.g. sampling time, grouping of sub areas or time sharing with display driving Synchronisation with the driving of the display or the backlighting unit to avoid interferences generated internally G06F3/04184
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04186 Touch location disambiguation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0446 using a grid-like structure of electrodes in at least two directions, e.g. using row and column electrodes
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0447 Position sensing using the local deformation of sensor cells
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04815 Interaction with a metaphor-based environment or interaction object displayed as three-dimensional, e.g. changing the user viewpoint with respect to the environment or object
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04845 for image manipulation, e.g. dragging, rotation, expansion or change of colour
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0485 Scrolling or panning
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0488 using a touch-screen or digitiser, e.g. input of commands through traced gestures
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 30/19173 Classification techniques
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 30/1983 Syntactic or structural pattern recognition, e.g. symbolic string recognition
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 40/107 : Static hand or arm
• CPC Class Codes: H03K 17/9622 : using a plurality of detectors, e.g. keyboard
• CPC Class Codes: H03K 2217/960725 : Charge-transfer

Abstract

Apparatus and methods are disclosed for simultaneously tracking multiple finger and palm contacts as hands approach, touch, and slide across a proximity-sensing, multi-touch surface. Identification and classification of intuitive hand configurations and motions enables unprecedented integration of typing, resting, pointing, scrolling, 3D manipulation, and handwriting into a versatile, ergonomic computer input device.

Claims

1. A method for mapping gestures performed on a multi-touch surface to graphical user interface commands, the method comprising:

detecting a plurality of contacts on the multi-touch surface;

matching the detected plurality of contacts to distinct parts of a hand;

determining a whole hand translation by the hand across the multi-touch surface from movement of the detected plurality of contacts; and

generating a pan command in response to the whole hand translation on the multi-touch surface by taking into account movement of the detected plurality of contacts that are not matched to a palm part of the hand and ignoring movement of the detected plurality of contacts that are matched to a palm part of the hand.

2. The method of claim 1 further comprising generating a rotate command in response to detecting a hand rotation on the multi-touch surface.

3. The method of claim 2 wherein the hand rotation is rotation about a wrist.

4. The method of claim 3 further comprising generating a zoom command in response to detecting hand scaling by uniformly flexing or extending fingers on the multi-touch surface.

5. The method of claim 2 wherein the hand rotation is rotation between fingers.

6. The method of claim 5 further comprising generating a zoom command in response to detecting hand scaling by uniformly flexing or extending fingers on the multi-touch surface.

7. The method of claim 2 further comprising generating a zoom command in response to detecting hand scaling by uniformly flexing or extending fingers on the multi-touch surface.

8. The method of claim 1 further comprising generating a zoom command in response to detecting hand scaling by uniformly flexing or extending fingers on the multi-touch surface.

9. The method of claim 1 wherein the detected contacts include finger and palm contacts.

10. A method for mapping gestures performed on a multi-touch surface to graphical user interface commands, the method comprising:

detecting a plurality of contacts on the multi-touch surface;

matching the detected plurality of contacts to distinct parts of a hand;

detecting a hand rotation by the hand from movement of the detected plurality of contacts; and

generating a rotate command in response to the detected hand rotation on the multi-touch surface by taking into account movement of the detected plurality of contacts that are not matched to a palm part of the hand and ignoring movement of the detected plurality of contacts that are matched to a palm part of the hand.

11. The method of claim 10 wherein the hand rotation is rotation about a wrist.

12. The method of claim 11 further comprising generating a zoom command in response to detecting hand scaling by uniformly flexing or extending fingers on the multi-touch surface.

13. The method of claim 10 wherein the hand rotation is rotation between fingers.

14. The method of claim 13 further comprising generating a zoom command in response to detecting hand scaling by uniformly flexing or extending fingers on the multi-touch surface.

15. The method of claim 10 further comprising generating a zoom command in response to detecting hand scaling by uniformly flexing or extending fingers on the multi-touch surface.

16. The method of claim 10 wherein the detected contacts include finger and palm contacts.

17. A method for mapping gestures performed on a multi-touch surface to graphical user interface commands, the method comprising:

detecting a plurality of contacts on the multi-touch surface;

matching the detected plurality of contacts to distinct fingers on a hand;

detecting hand scaling by the hand resulting from the detected plurality of contacts indicating uniformly flexing or extending of the fingers on the multi-touch surface; and

generating a zoom command in response to the detected hand scaling.

18. The method of claim 17 wherein the detected of contacts include finger and palm contacts.

19. A system for mapping gestures performed on a multi-touch surface to graphical user interface commands, the system configured to:

detect a plurality of contacts on the multi-touch surface;

match the detected plurality of contacts to distinct parts of a hand;

determine a whole hand translation by the hand across the multi-touch surface from movement of the detected plurality of contacts; and

generate a pan command in response to the whole hand translation on the multi-touch surface by taking into account movement of the detected plurality of contacts that are not matched to a palm part of the hand and ignoring movement of the detected plurality of contacts that are matched to a palm part of the hand.

20. A system for mapping gestures performed on a multi-touch surface to graphical user interface commands, the system configured to:

detect a plurality of contacts on the multi-touch surface;

match the detected plurality of contacts to distinct parts of a hand;

detect a hand rotation by the hand from movement of the detected plurality of contacts; and

generate a rotate command in response to the detected hand rotation on the multi-touch surface by taking into account movement of the detected plurality of contacts that are not matched to a palm part of the hand and ignoring movement of the detected plurality of contacts that are matched to a palm part of the hand.

21. A system for mapping gestures performed on a multi-touch surface to graphical user interface commands, the system configured to:

detect a plurality of contacts on the multi-touch surface;

match the detected plurality of contacts to distinct fingers on a hand;

detect hand scaling by the hand resulting from the detected plurality of contacts indicating uniformly flexing or extending of the fingers on the multi-touch surface; and

generate a zoom command in response to the detected hand scaling.