Image of a keyboard

• US 9,261,913 B2
• Filed: 03/30/2010
• Issued: 02/16/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 03/30/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. (HP Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. (HP Inc.)
• Inventors: Campbell, Robert, Wong, Glenn A., Solomon, Mark C., Wu, Arthur Chao-Chung, Mittal, Gaurang
• Primary Examiner(s): Lee, Jr., Kenneth B
• Application Number:
  US13/387,164
• Publication Number:
  US 20120120016A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,149 Days
• Field of Search: 345173-182
• US Class Current: 1/1
• 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 1/1643 the display being associated to a digitizer, e.g. laptops that can be used as penpads details related to the relative motion of the display enclosure with respect to the body enclosure, e.g. to move between laptop and tablet PC configuration G06F1/1615
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/166 related to integrated arrangements for adjusting the position of the main body with respect to the supporting surface, e.g. legs for adjusting the tilt angle
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1692 the I/O peripheral being a secondary touch screen used as control interface, e.g. virtual buttons or sliders
• 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 system or method including a display and sensor to detect touches of the display. The display can display an image of a keyboard. The image of the keyboard can be shaped to the locations of the touches of the display.

Claims

1. A system comprising:

a display; and

a set of sensors, including a first sensor to detect touch inputs on the display; and

a controller coupled to the set of sensors to;

provide a keyboard on the display in a first configuration, the keyboard including a first set of keys in the first configuration and being provided in a first region of the display; and

in response to detecting a touch input, after the keyboard to include a second set of keys that are provided in a second region of the display in a second configuration, the second set of keys comprising keys different from the first set of keys, the keyboard being altered without altering the first set of keys provided in the first region,

wherein altering the keyboard includes selecting at least one of the second region or the second configuration based on a location of the touch input.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the keyboard of the second configuration has a curved shape relative to the keyboard of the first configuration.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the set of sensors includes a second sensor coupled to the controller to determine an angle of the display, wherein the controller uses the sensor to detect the angle based on at least the touch input.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the set of sensors includes one or more sensors to detect a location for each of multiple fingers of a user'"'"'s hand, and wherein the controller provides the keyboard of the first configuration or second configuration when the location for each of the multiple fingers indicates that the user'"'"'s fingers are in a home position.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the second set of keys of the keyboard of the second configuration includes a number pad.

13. The system of claim 1, wherein the keyboard in the first configuration is split into at least two portions.

16. The system of claim 1, wherein the controller discontinues providing the keyboard if the display is moved from a first position to a second position.

6. A method for operating a computing device, the method being implemented by one or more processors and comprising:

providing a keyboard on the display in a first configuration, the keyboard including a first set of keys in the first configuration and being provided in a first region of the display; and

in response to detecting a touch input, altering the keyboard to include a second set of keys that are provided in a second region of the display in a second configuration, the second set of keys comprising keys different from the first set of keys, the keyboard being altered without altering the first set of keys provided in the first region,

wherein altering the keyboard includes selecting at least one of the second region or the second configuration based on a location of the touch input.

7. The method of claim 6, further comprising

displaying alphanumeric text characters on individual keys of the keyboard in the first configuration and in the second configuration.

8. The method of claim 6, wherein altering the keyboard further comprises shaping the keyboard in the second configuration to be curved relative to the keyboard of the first configuration.

9. The method of claim 6, further comprising determining an angle of the display, and further comprising interpreting the determined angle as at least one of the one or more inputs.

14. The method of claim 6, wherein the keyboard in the first configuration is split into at least two portions.

17. The method of claim 6, further comprising discontinuing providing the keyboard when the display is detected as being moved from a first position to a second position.

10. A non-transitory computer readable storage medium comprising instructions that when executed by one or more processors of a computing device, cause the computing device to:

provide a keyboard on the display in a first configuration, the keyboard including a first set of keys in the first configuration and being provided in a first region of the display; and

in response to detecting a touch input, after the keyboard to include a second set of keys that are provided in a second region of the display in a second configuration, the second set of keys comprising keys different from the first set of keys, the keyboard being altered without altering the first set of keys provided in the first region,

wherein altering the keyboard includes selecting at least one of the second region or the second configuration based on a location of the touch input.

11. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 10, wherein altering the keyboard further comprises shaping the keyboard in the second configuration to be curved relative to the keyboard of the first configuration.

12. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 11, further comprising instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the computing device to display alphanumeric text characters on individual keys of the keyboard in the first configuration and in the second configuration.

15. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 10, wherein the keyboard in the first configuration is split into at least two portions.

18. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 10, further comprising instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the computing device to discontinue providing the keyboard if the display is detected as being moved from a first position to a second position.