Displaced double tap gesture

• US 9,507,513 B2
• Filed: 08/17/2012
• Issued: 11/29/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 08/17/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Google Inc. (Alphabet Inc.)
• Inventors: Gordon, David R., Jagadeesan, Ram Brijesh
• Primary Examiner(s): Bashore, William
• Assistant Examiner(s): Sugent, James F
• Application Number:
  US13/588,493
• Publication Number:
  US 20150186026A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,565 Days
• Field of Search: 715/788, 715/863, 345/173
• US Class Current: 1/1
• 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 2203/04806 Zoom, i.e. interaction techniques or interactors for controlling the zooming operation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/016 Input arrangements with force or tactile feedback as computer generated output to the user
• 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 3/041 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 3/0416 Control or interface arrangements specially adapted for digitisers
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0484 for the control of specific functions or operations, e.g. selecting or manipulating an object, an image or a displayed text element, setting a parameter value or selecting a range
• 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

Abstract

On a computing device having a motion sensor interface, a first tap a first point is detected via the motion sensor interface. A second tap is detected via the motion sensor interface at a second point within a fixed time interval of detecting the first tap. In response to determining that the second point is inside a fixed radius of the first point, the first tap and the second tap are processed as an instance of a first gesture. Otherwise, in response to determining that the second point is outside the fixed radius of the first point, the first tap and the second tap are processed as an instance of a second gesture.

Claims

1. A method for processing user input on a computing device having a motion sensor interface, the method comprising:

displaying an initial image corresponding to an initial view of a digital geographical map on the computing device, wherein the digital geographical map is displayed at a selected zoom level in the initial view;

detecting, via the motion sensor interface, a first tap at a first point, the first tap including a first touchdown event at the first point and a first liftoff event at the first point;

detecting, via the motion sensor interface, a second tap at a second point within a fixed time interval of detecting the first tap, the second tap including a second touchdown event at the second point and a second liftoff event at the second point;

based at least on the first tap, the second tap, and a fixed radius value, selecting one of a first image manipulation function that includes one of increasing or decreasing the selected zoom level by a predetermined amount to transforms the initial view of the digital geographical map to a first modified view of the digital geographical map and a second image manipulation function that includes the other one of increasing or decreasing the selected zoom level by the predetermined amount to transforms the initial view of the digital geographical map to a second modified view of the digital geographical map, including;

determining whether the second point is inside the fixed radius value of the first point,

in response to determining that the second point is inside the fixed radius value of the first point, processing the first tap and the second tap as an instance of a first double tap gesture to invoke the first image manipulation function;

otherwise, in response to determining that the second point is outside the fixed radius value of the first point, processing the first tap and the second tap as an instance of a second double tap gesture to invoke the second image manipulation function.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the fixed radius value is a first fixed radius value;

the method further comprising determining that the second point is within a second fixed radius value of the first point.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein a pair of taps detected outside the fixed time interval is interpreted as two separate instances of a third gesture.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein applying an instance of the first double tap gesture or the second double tap gesture to the digital geographical map includes providing the first point as a parameter to a respective map manipulation function.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein applying an instance of the second double tap gesture to the digital geographical map includes:

determining a command context defined by interaction with the digital geographical map prior to detecting the first tap, and

selecting a map manipulation function according to the determined command context.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the motion sensor interface is a touchscreen, and wherein the first point and the second point are on a surface of the touchscreen.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein:

detecting the first tap includes detecting the first touchdown event and the first liftoff event within a fixed liftoff interval of the first touchdown event, and

detecting the second tap includes detecting the second touchdown event and the second liftoff event within the fixed liftoff interval of the second touchdown event.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein:

detecting the first tap and the second tap includes receiving respective events from an operating system, at an application executing on the operating system, and

processing the first tap and the second tap is implemented in the application.

15. The method of claim 1, further comprising implementing a state machine to process the first tap and the second tap as an instance of the first gesture or the second gesture,

including:

awaiting the first tap in an initial state, and

returning to the initial state after processing the first tap and the second tap as an instance of the first gesture or the second gesture.

16. The method of claim 15, further including:

upon the second touchdown event, advancing to a state in which the first gesture is detected after determining that the second point is inside the fixed radius value of the first point,

upon the second touchdown event, advancing to a state in which the second gesture is detected after determining that the second point is inside the fixed radius value of the first point, and

returning to the initial state upon the second liftoff event.

17. The method of claim 1, wherein processing the first tap and the second tap as the instance of the second gesture includes interpreting a direction of displacement of the second tap relative to the first tap.

8. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing thereon a plurality of instructions for processing input provided via a touchscreen, wherein the plurality of instructions, when executed on one or more processors, causes the one or more processors to:

cause an initial view of a digital geographical map to be displayed on the touchscreen, wherein the digital geographical map is displayed at a selected zoom level in the initial view;

receive an indication of a first tap at a first point on the digital geographical map;

receive an indication of a second tap at a second point on the digital geographical map, wherein each of the first tap and the second tap is associated with a respective touchdown and liftoff event at the first point and the second point, respectively;

based at least on the first tap, the second tap, a fixed time interval of the first tap, and a fixed radius value, select one of a first map function that includes one of increasing or decreasing the selected zoom level to transforms the initial view of the digital geographical map to a first modified view of the digital geographical map and a second map function that includes the other one of increasing or decreasing the selected zoom level to transforms the initial view of the digital geographical map to a second modified view of the digital geographical map, including;

in response to determining that the second tap is detected within the fixed time interval of the first tap, select one of the first map function or the second map function, including (i) select the first map function in response to determining that the second point is within the fixed radius value, and (ii) select the second map function in response to determining that the second point is outside the fixed radius value; and

apply the selected one of the first map function and the second map function to the digital geographical map to transform the digital geographical map from the initial view to one of a first modified view or a second modified view, respectively.

9. The computer-readable medium of claim 8, wherein increasing or decreasing the selected zoom level is associated with a same discrete change in zoom level.

10. A device comprising:

one or more processors;

a motion sensor interface coupled to the one or more processors and configured to receive user input;

a memory coupled to the one or more processors storing therein a set of instructions of an extended double tap gesture processing module which, when executed on the one or more processors, is configured to;

displaying an initial image corresponding to an initial view of a digital geographical map;

receive, from the motion sensor interface, an indication of a first tap, including a first touchdown event and a first liftoff event, at a first point,

receive, from the motion sensor interface, an indication of a second tap, including a second touchdown event and a second liftoff event, at a second point,

based at least on the first tap, the second tap, a fixed time interval of the indication of the first tap, and a fixed radius value, selecting one of a first image manipulation function that transforms the initial view of the digital geographical map to a first modified view of the digital geographical map and a second image manipulation function that transforms the initial view of the digital geographical map to a second modified view of the digital geographical map by rotating the digital geographical map to align the digital geographical map with a default orientation, including;

in response to determining that the indication of the second tap is received within the fixed time interval of the indication of the first tap, process the first tap and the second tap as an instance of one of a plurality of double tap gestures, including selecting one of the plurality of double tap gestures based at least on the fixed radius value,

wherein selecting a first one of the plurality of double tap gestures includes invoking the first image manipulation function in response to determining that the second point is within the fixed radius value, and selecting a second one of the plurality of double tap gestures includes invoking the second image manipulation function in response to determining that the second point is outside the fixed radius value.

11. The device of claim 10, wherein the motion sensor interface includes a touchscreen, and wherein the first point and the second point are on a surface of the touchscreen.

12. The device of claim 10, wherein the memory further stores instructions of a map controller configured to (i) render the digital geographical map using map data, (ii) receive an indication of the selected one of the plurality of double tap gestures from the extended double tap gesture processing module, and (iii) apply the selected one of the plurality of double tap gestures to the digital geographical map.

13. The device of claim 12, wherein the plurality of double tap gestures includes a regular double tap gesture selected when the distance between the first point and the second point is within the first radius value, and a displaced double tap gesture selected when the distance between the first point and the second point is outside the first radius value but within a second radius value.