Multi-screen display control

• US 8,872,731 B2
• Filed: 08/31/2011
• Issued: 10/28/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 10/01/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Z124 LLC (Flexis)
• Original Assignee: Z124 LLC (Flexis)
• Inventors: Gimpl, Martin, de Paz, Alexander, Sirpal, Sanjiv
• Primary Examiner(s): Nguyen, Kevin M
• Application Number:
  US13/222,888
• Publication Number:
  US 20120081302A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,154 Days
• Field of Search: 345/1.1, 345/1.3, 345/173, 715/769, 715/788, 715/800, 715/863
• US Class Current: 345/1.3
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1616 with folding flat displays, e.g. laptop computers or notebooks having a clamshell configuration, with body parts pivoting to an open position around an axis parallel to the plane they define in closed position
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1641 the display being formed by a plurality of foldable display components G06F1/1647 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1647 including at least an additional display G06F1/1692 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/017 Gesture based interaction, e.g. based on a set of recognized hand gestures interaction based on gestures traced on a digitiser G06F3/04883
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0412 Digitisers structurally integrated in a display
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0416 Control or interface arrangements specially adapted for digitisers
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0481 based on specific properties of the displayed interaction object or a metaphor-based environment, e.g. interaction with desktop elements like windows or icons, or assisted by a cursor's changing behaviour or appearance
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04817 using icons graphical or visual programming using iconic symbols G06F8/34
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0482 Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0483 Interaction with page-structured environments, e.g. book metaphor
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04842 Selection of displayed objects or displayed text elements G06F3/0482 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04845 for image manipulation, e.g. dragging, rotation, expansion or change of colour
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04847 Interaction techniques to control parameter settings, e.g. interaction with sliders or dials
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0486 Drag-and-drop
• 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: G06F 3/1423 controlling a plurality of local displays, e.g. CRT and flat panel display

Abstract

A dual-screen user device and methods for controlling data displayed thereby are disclosed. Specifically, the data displayed by the multiple screens of the dual-screen user device is conditioned upon the type of user gesture or combination of user gestures detected. The display controls described herein can correlate user inputs received in a gesture capture region to one or more display actions, which may include maximization, minimization, or reformatting instructions.

Claims

1. A method of controlling data displayed by a dual-screen device, comprising:

receiving a first user input gesture that corresponds to instructions to maximize a display of a first application displayed on a first screen of the dual-screen device;

determining, according to the first user input gesture and maximization rules for the first application, a first display configuration for the first application;

based on the first display configuration for the first application, causing data from the first application to be simultaneously displayed on both the first screen and a second screen of the dual-screen device in accordance with the first display configuration;

receiving a second user input gesture, different from the first user input gesture, that corresponds to instructions to maximize a display of the first application displayed on the first screen of the dual-screen device;

determining, according to the second user input gesture and the maximization rules for the first application, a second display configuration for the first application, wherein the second display configuration is different from the first display configuration; and

based on the second display configuration for the first application, causing data from the first application to be simultaneously displayed on both the first screen and second screen of the dual-screen device in accordance with the second display configuration.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the maximization rules for the first application define that the first application is to be displayed on all of a display of the first screen as well as all of a display of the second screen when maximized and when the dual-screen device is in an open landscape state.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the first display configuration causes the first application to be maximized in a dual-landscape output configuration such that a first set of data from the first application is displayed on the display of the first screen and a second set of data from the first application is displayed on the display of the second screen.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the second display configuration causes the first application to be maximized in a landscape max output configuration such that a first set of data from the first application is displayed simultaneously on both the display of the first screen and the display of the second screen.

5. The method of claim 4, the method further comprising:

generating a transition area that progressively fills the display of the second screen with data from the first application; and

causing the transition area to replace a desktop display that was previously presented on the display of the second screen.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the desktop display that was previously presented on the display of the second screen corresponds to one of a plurality of desktop displays in a desktop display stack and wherein another desktop display in the desktop display stack is assigned to the first screen and is covered by the first application.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving a third user input that corresponds to instructions to minimize the first application displayed on the first and second screen of the dual-screen device; and

reformatting the first application such that it is displayed on the first screen similar to the way in which the first application was displayed on the first screen prior to receiving the first user input.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the first user input corresponds to at least one of a (i) flick gesture and (ii) drag gesture.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the first user input is received in a gesture capture region of the first screen and wherein the gesture capture region of the first screen is separate from a display area of the first screen.

20. The method of claim 1, further comprising determining, according to the first user input gesture, maximization rules for the first application, and an orientation of the dual-screen device, a first display configuration for the first application.

10. A non-transitory computer-readable medium having stored thereon instructions that cause a computing system to execute a method, the instructions comprising:

instructions configured to analyze a first user input gesture received at a dual-screen device and determine that the first user input gesture corresponds to instructions to maximize a display of a first application displayed on a first screen of the dual-screen device, wherein the first application is not displayed on a second screen of the dual-screen device;

instructions configured to determine according to the first user input gesture and maximization rules for the first application, a first display configuration for the first application;

instructions configured to invoke the maximization of the first application based on the maximization rules for the first application such that data from the first application is simultaneously displayed on both the first screen and the second screen of the dual-screen device in accordance with the first display configuration;

instructions configured to analyze a second user input gesture received at the dual-screen device and determine that the second user input gesture corresponds to instructions to maximize a display of a first application displayed on a first screen of the dual-screen device, wherein the first application is not displayed on a second screen of the dual-screen device;

instructions configured to determine, according to the second user input gesture and maximization rules for the first application, a second display configuration for the first application, wherein the second display configuration is different from the first display configuration; and

instructions configured to invoke the maximization of the first application based on the maximization rules for the first application such that data from the first application is simultaneously displayed on both the first screen and the second screen of the dual-screen device in accordance with the second display configuration.

11. The computer-readable medium of claim 10, wherein the first screen corresponds to a primary screen and wherein the second screen corresponds to a secondary screen.

12. The computer-readable medium of claim 10, wherein the maximization rules for the first application define that the first application is to be displayed on all of a display of the first screen as well as all of a display of the second screen when maximized and when the dual-screen device is in an open landscape state.

13. The computer-readable medium of claim 12, wherein the first display configuration causes the first application to be maximized in a dual-landscape output configuration such that a first set of data from the first application is displayed on the display of the first screen and a second set of data from the first application is displayed on the display of the second screen.

14. The computer-readable medium of claim 13, wherein the second display configuration causes the first application to be maximized in a landscape max output configuration such that a first set of data from the first application is displayed simultaneously on both the display of the first screen and the display of the second screen.

15. A dual-screen user device, comprising:

one or more processors;

a first screen including a first display area;

a second screen including a second display area; and

a non-transitory computer-readable medium having instructions stored thereon for execution by the one or more processors that include;

a first set of instructions configured to analyze a first user input gesture received at a dual-screen device and determine that the first user input gesture corresponds to instructions to maximize a display of a first application displayed on the first screen of the dual-screen device;

a second set of instructions configured to determine, according to the first user input gesture and maximization rules for the first application, a first display configuration for the first application;

a third set of instructions configured to invoke the maximization of the first application based on the maximization rules for the first application such that data from the first application is simultaneously displayed on the both the first display area and the second display area in accordance with the first display configuration;

a fourth set of instructions configured to analyze a second user input gesture received at the dual-screen device and determine that the second user input gesture corresponds to instructions to maximize a display of a first application displayed on a first screen of the dual-screen device, wherein the first application is not displayed on a second screen of the dual-screen device;

a fifth set of instructions configured to determine, according to the second user input gesture and maximization rules for the first application, a second display configuration for the first application, wherein the second display configuration is different from the first display configuration; and

a sixth set of instructions configured to invoke the maximization of the first application based on the maximization rules for the first application such that data from the first application is simultaneously displayed on both the first screen and the second screen of the dual-screen device in accordance with the second display configuration.

16. The device of claim 15, wherein the first screen comprises a gesture capture region that is separate from the first display area of the first screen and wherein the first user input comprises at least one of a (i) drag gesture and (ii) flick gesture received in the gesture capture region that is directed toward the second screen.

17. The device of claim 16, wherein the first user input comprises a drag gesture and wherein the first application replaces a second desktop display that was displayed on the second display area prior to receiving the first user input.

18. The device of claim 16, wherein the data from the first application is automatically displayed on both the first and second display areas in a landscape max output configuration.

19. The device of claim 16, wherein the data from the first application is automatically displayed on both the first and second display areas in a landscape dual output configuration.