Optical stylus interaction

Abstract

Optical stylus interaction techniques are described. In an implementation, a display of a computing device includes optical sensors capable of detecting images projected by a stylus. A stylus may include a projection system to project various images used to convey interaction information that may be interpreted by the computing device. Based on recognition of different projected images, a context for interaction of the stylus may be ascertained and corresponding operations may be performed by the computing device. This may include resolving a spatial position of the stylus relative to the display device as well as movement of the stylus and images that defines various stylus-based gestures. In addition, the environment for optical stylus interaction enables a writing mode that emulates natural writing by mapping different projectable images to changes in pressure applied to the stylus when in contact with the display.

Description

BACKGROUND

One way in which a user may interact with a computing device is via a stylus. A stylus is a pen-like device that may facilitate digital hand writing and drawing as well as interactions with a touchscreen display. A stylus may be used as an alternative to direct input by a user's hand. Traditional styluses, though, typically may rely upon near surface sensors such as proximity or capacitive sensors to provide input. Accordingly, functionality provided by a traditional stylus is limited at distances beyond an inch or so from a computing device. Moreover, writing and drawing with a traditional stylus may feel unnatural because typically digital ink traces made via a stylus are not applied in a manner comparable to physical markings made by a pen, paintbrush, or other writing instrument.

SUMMARY

Optical stylus interaction techniques are described. In an implementation, a display of a computing device includes optical sensors capable of detecting images projected by a stylus. A stylus may be configured with a projection system to project various images used to convey interaction information that may be decoded and recognized by the computing device. Based on recognition of different projected images, a context for interaction of the stylus may be ascertained and corresponding operations may be performed by the computing device. The decoding may include resolving a spatial position of the stylus relative to the display device as well as movement of the stylus that defines various stylus based gestures. In addition, the environment for optical stylus interaction enables a writing mode that emulates natural writing by mapping different available images to changes in pressure applied to the stylus when in contact with the display.

This Summary is provided to introduce a selection of concepts in a simplified form that are further described below in the Detailed Description. This Summary is not intended to identify key features or essential features of the claimed subject matter, nor is it intended to be used as an aid in determining the scope of the claimed subject matter.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The detailed description is described with reference to the accompanying figures. In the figures, the left-most digit(s) of a reference number identifies the figure in which the reference number first appears. The use of the same reference numbers in different instances in the description and the figures may indicate similar or identical items.

FIG. 1 is an illustration of an environment in an example implementation that is operable to employ optical stylus interaction techniques.

FIG. 2 illustrates an example system showing a stylus of FIG. 1 in greater detail.

FIG. 3 depicts an illustration of an example sequence of images to implement optical stylus interaction techniques.

FIG. 4 is a flow diagram depicting a procedure in an example implementation in which projected images are decoded to trigger corresponding actions.

FIG. 5 is a flow diagram depicting a procedure in an example implementation in which projected images are interpreted to determine a context for interaction with a computing device using a stylus.

FIG. 6 is a flow diagram depicting a procedure in an example implementation in which a stylus projects images to convey corresponding interaction information.

FIG. 7 is a flow diagram depicting a procedure in an example implementation in which a stylus projects images indicative of an activated mode.

FIG. 8 illustrates an example system and components of the system that can be employed to implement embodiments of the techniques described herein.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Overview

Conventional styluses have limited functionality when used at a distance from a display device of a computing device. In addition, digital ink traces made by a traditional stylus are not applied in a manner comparable to physical markings made by a pen, paintbrush, or other writing instrument, which may make writing with a traditional stylus feel unnatural.

Optical stylus interaction techniques are described. In an implementation, a display of a computing device includes optical sensors capable of detecting images projected by a stylus. A stylus may be configured with a projection system to project various images used to convey interaction information that may be decoded and recognized by the computing device. Based on interpretation of different projected images, a context for interaction of the stylus may be ascertained and corresponding operations may be performed by the computing device. This may include resolving a spatial position of the stylus relative to the display device as well as movement of the stylus and/or the images that defines various stylus-based gestures. The spatial position may be determined for any or all of six degrees of freedom of the stylus. Thus, a variety of different kinds of stylus based gestures may be enabled and the stylus may be used for cursor control, gesture input, and other control functions at some distance away from the display surface.

In addition, the environment described for optical stylus interaction enables a writing mode that emulates natural writing by mapping different interpretable images to changes in pressure applied to the stylus when in contact with the display. For instance, a stylus may include a pressure switch in its tip that measures discrete pressure levels applied to the tip. The stylus may be configured to project different images for different pressure levels. Accordingly, the computing device may adjust attributes of digital ink traces in response to writing pressure changes in a manner that emulates natural writing.

In the following discussion, an example operating environment is first described that is operable to employ various optical stylus interaction techniques described herein. In the course of discussing the example operating environment, some implementation details regarding an example optically enabled stylus are also discussed. Example procedures involving the various techniques are then described, which may be employed in the example environment as well as in other environments. Accordingly, the example environment is not limited to performing the example procedures. Likewise, the example procedures are not limited to implementation in the example environment. Thereafter, an example system and components of the system suitable to implement optical stylus interaction techniques in accordance with one or more embodiments are described.

Example Operating Environment

FIG. 1 is an illustration of an example operating environment 100 that is operable to employ optical stylus interaction techniques described herein. The operating environment includes a computing device 102 having a processing system 104 and computer-readable media 106 that is representative of various different types and combinations of media, memory, and storage components and/or devices that may be associated with a computing device. The computing device 102 is further illustrated as including an operating system 108 and one or more device applications 110 that may reside on the computer-readable media (as shown), may be implemented at least partially by one or more hardware elements, and/or may be executed via the processing system 104. Computer-readable media 106 may include both “computer-readable storage media” and “communication media,” examples of which can be found in the discussion of the example computing system of FIG. 8. The computing device 102 may be configured as any suitable computing system and/or device that employ various processing systems 104 examples of which are also discussed in relation to the example computing system of FIG. 8.

The computing device 102 is also illustrated as including a display device 112 and an input/output module 114. The display device 112 may be configured as a touchscreen to enable touchscreen and gesture functionality. In some embodiments, the display device 112 is configured to include a variety of sensors configured to sense different kinds of interaction with the display device 112. For example, the display device 112 may be configured with optical sensors (e.g., a camera array, photo sensors, complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) sensors, charge-coupled device (CCD) imaging sensors, infrared sensors, light detecting LEDs, photodiodes, and/or other optical sensors) through which optical interaction with the display device 112 may be detected and processed. In addition or alternatively, a display device 112 may also include capacitive sensors, thermal sensors, pressure sensors, proximity sensors and the like for detection of touch input, gestures, and other interaction with the display. In at least some embodiments, the display device 112 is configured as a Sensor-In-Pixel (SIP) panel for which sensors may be associated with respective individual pixels or groups of pixels of the display device 112. A SIP panel may sense differences in light incident upon (emanating from) its surface using an array of sensor elements within the layers of the panel. Illumination may transmit through the panel and reflect off objects or images at or near the surface thereby providing a mechanism for generating optical signals that may be used to detect the objects or images.

The input/output module 114 is representative of functionality to identify various kinds of inputs and cause operations to be performed that correspond to the inputs. Inputs identifiable/interpretable by the input/output module 114 include touch, gestures, stylus input, and/or optical input that is detected via the display device 112 as well as keystrokes, mouse input, motion of the device captured via inertial sensors, input and gestures detected by a camera of the device, and/or operation of controls such as physical buttons, switches, levers, and keys provided by a device. For example, the input/output module 114 may be configured to recognize a touch input, such as a finger of a user's hand 116 as proximal to a display device 112 of the computing device 102 using touchscreen functionality.

Various input may also be recognized by the input/output module 114 as including attributes (e.g., movement, selection point, size, etc.) that are usable to differentiate between different inputs recognized by the input/output module 114. This differentiation may then serve as a basis to identify a gesture from the inputs and consequently an operation that is to be performed based on identification of the gesture. A variety of different types of gestures may be recognized by the input/output module 114, such a gestures that are recognized from a single type of input (e.g., touch gestures such as the previously described drag-and-drop gesture) as well as gestures involving multiple types and combinations of inputs. The input/output module 114 may be further be configured to detect stylus input and/or stylus gestures provided by a stylus 118 including but not limited to optical interaction of the stylus 118 with the display device 112.

To handle optical interactions, the input/output module 114 may include or otherwise make use of an image decoder module 120 that represents functionality of the computing device 102 to perform processing to decode images projected onto the display device 112 by a suitably configured stylus 118 (or other optically enabled device). Thus, in at least some embodiments, a stylus is configured to enable optical interaction with the display device 112. For instance, the example stylus 118 is depicted as including a projection system 122 that may be used to project various images 124. For example, the projection system 122 may be configured as a laser projection system that projects holographs provided by optical elements or another conventional lens projection system that use a spatial light modulator (SLM), a liquid crystal display (LCD) array, and so forth. Images 124 that are projected to the display device 112 may be detected and recognized by the computing device 102. Based on recognition of different images, a context for interaction of the stylus 118 may be ascertained and the image decoder module 120 may cause operations/actions corresponding to the context to be performed by the computing device. The decoding may include resolving a spatial position of the stylus 118 relative to the display device based on processing of the images 124 as well as movement of the stylus and/or the images that define various stylus-based gestures.

Further, different modes of operation for a stylus may be conveyed using different images 124 that are projected and recognized via the display device 112. A mode manager module 126 of the stylus represents functionality operable to cause different images to be projected for different modes such as a hover mode (e.g., cursor control mode), pointer mode, writing mode, gesture mode, game mode, and so forth. Different modes may be triggered and controlled by a mode switch of the stylus, such as a mode trigger button, a selector switch, a pressure switch in the stylus tip, and so forth. In one example, a writing mode that emulates pressure sensitive writing is implemented by using different images that are mapped to discrete pressure levels that may be measured using a pressure switch in the stylus tip or otherwise.

Additionally, different styluses may be configured to project different respective images that may be configured as or include identifiers for the different styluses. Accordingly, different identifying images and/or identifiers provided as part of an image may be employed to determine stylus identity and differentiate between multiple styluses and corresponding input. Thus, using optical techniques described above and below, various information regarding a stylus may be conveyed from the stylus to a device including position, spatial orientation, mode of operation, stylus identification, movement, input commands, gestures, and so forth. Details regarding these and other aspects of optical stylus interaction techniques are described in relation to the following figures.

FIG. 2 is a schematic illustration showing implementation details of an example of stylus, generally at 200. In the depicted example, the stylus 118 includes a projection system 122 that may be configured in various ways to project images 124 for detection and interpretation by a computing device 102. As mentioned, in at least some embodiments, an image 124 that is projected onto a display device 112 having optical sensors (such as a Sensor-In-Pixel (SIP) panel) can be optically detected based upon differences in illumination at the surface of the display. As represented in FIG. 2, the projection system 122 may include a light source 202 and one or more image elements 204 that can be employed to form a projection 206 of an image 124. Images 124 may include holographic images, digital images, glyphs, icons, patterns, pictures, arc and line combinations, and/or other suitable images that may be projected via a projection system 122 of a stylus 118.

A variety of different types of light sources are contemplated including laser diode sources, light emitting diode (LED) sources, an LCD array, SLMs, and so forth. The image elements 204 are representative of various components and techniques that may be employed to capture, contain, record, or otherwise embody image information/data used by the projection system 122 to project suitable images and/or patterns. For example, a beam 208 from the light source 202 may be used to illuminate different image elements 204 and form a corresponding projection 206 of the image 124. As described in greater detail below, one or more beams from one or more light sources may be configured to scan across different image elements 204 to produce different corresponding images for detection by the display in different scenarios. In another example, image elements 204 represent digital patterns, graphics, or spatial light modulators that may be projected via the projection system 122 using digital image projection techniques. Different images projected by a stylus are interpretable by a target computing device to recognize interaction information for the stylus conveyed by the images including but not limited to information such as a spatial position of the stylus, an activated mode for the stylus, a gesture produced by manipulation of the stylus, and/or an identity of the stylus. Thus, interpretation of projected images by the target computing device (e.g., image decoder module 120) enables the device to selectively perform corresponding operations and actions in response to the optical input from the stylus.

In one particular example, the projection system 122 is configured as a laser projection system that employs laser sources and diffractive optical elements (DOEs) to project holographic images recorded via the DOEs. For instance, image elements 204 may be configured as DOEs having image information used to reproduce corresponding holographs when appropriately illuminated via the light source 202. Accordingly, the light source 202 may be a laser, such as a vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser (VCSEL) or other suitable semiconductor laser diode.

In another example, the projection system 122 may be configured to form projections via an image forming device and a lens system that may be arranged in various ways. For instance, the image forming device represents functionality and devices used to form an image including a spatial light modulator (SLM), an LCD array, and/or a digital image processor, and so forth. The image forming device may supply a formed image to the lens system for projection onto the target surface. The lens system therefore represents functionality to direct image content to a target. For instance, an SLM may be configured to provide light gating of a dot or pixel pattern for an image to control output of the image with content directed to a surface by a corresponding lens system. A variety of other configurations are also contemplated.

Other types of projection systems are also contemplated including laser systems, LED systems, and typical digital or analog projection systems suitable to project images from a stylus to a target. In at least some embodiments, the projected images are invisible to the human eye such as being infrared (IR) projections although visible projections and images may also be employed.

The stylus 118 further includes a stylus tip 210 that facilitates touch interaction and touch gestures through contact of the stylus tip 210 with the display device. As mentioned, different modes of operation for a stylus may also be conveyed using different projected images. To facilitate mode switching by the mode manager module 126, the stylus 118 may include at least one mode switch examples of which may include a mode button 212 and/or pressure switch 214 as depicted in FIG. 2. Other suitable components and mechanisms configured to toggle between different modes are also contemplated, such as a sliding switch, a touch sensitive button, and a stylus generated gesture, to name a few examples.

In general, the projection system 122 enables optical interaction with a device via projection of images 124 that are detected in some manner by the device. By so doing, interaction information regarding the stylus can be communicated via an optical channel between the stylus and the computing device. This may occur without establishing radio frequency (RF) connections or involving RF communication between the stylus and computing device. Thus, optical channels for conveying stylus interaction information may be used independently of and/or without RF communications between the stylus and computing device.

Interaction information can include information regarding the spatial orientation and location (e.g. spatial position) of the stylus. By decoding projected images, a computing device may be able to resolve six degrees of freedom for the stylus. This includes determination of x, y, and z coordinate positions of the stylus relative to the display and angular/rotational position of the stylus along x, y and z axes. For the example coordinate system, the x-y plane is defined by the display surface and the z-axis perpendicular to the display surface defines height relative to the x-y plane.

In particular, an image decoder module 120 may be configured to ascertain spatial orientation and location (e.g. spatial position) of the stylus based upon orientation, size, distortion, and/or size relationships of elements in projected images. Naturally, the point at which the image is projected onto a display device (e.g., intersection of the optical z-axis along which the image is projected with the display surface) may be employed to determine the “cursor” position (e.g., x and y coordinates) of the stylus. A height of the stylus above (or relative to) the display (e.g., z-height) may be determined based upon size calculations for projected images. Orientation of asymmetric elements of an image may be analyzed to identify a rotational position around the “optical” z-axis of the stylus, which is also referred to as “clocking” and/or a “clock” position of the stylus. Likewise, angular orientation of the stylus on the x-axis and y-axis may be determined based upon processing of asymmetric elements, image size, size relationships, and/or distortions of various image elements that occur as the angles of image projection change. For instance, ratios of different arc elements of a projected image may be used to compute corresponding angles of image projection.

Thus, image projections that convey stylus interaction information and decoding of such images as described herein enable an optical interaction environment for a device that can support different operational modes, commands, and stylus gestures, some examples of which are discussed in this document. A variety of different configurations and operational modes are contemplated to create a stylus suitable to implement optical stylus interaction techniques described herein. For example, styluses may range from relatively simple styluses designed to project a single image to more complex styluses designed to project multiple image, beams, and/or sequences of images. One or multiple lasers and/or other light sources may be employed for different stylus configurations.

Different operational modes may generally include at least a hover mode (e.g., cursor control mode) for interaction with a device from a distance and writing mode that may be activated to apply digital ink traces for writing, painting, and drawing in some scenarios. In hover mode, the stylus may perform control functions through optical interaction to manipulate operations of a device including controlling applications and user interfaces of the device. Some examples of control functions include controlling a cursor, menu navigation, input of stylus-based gestures, and so forth. The control functions may be determined at least in part based upon decoding of projected images and corresponding spatial positions and/or gestures. For instance, movement of the stylus between successive spatial positions may define a gesture and/or trigger a corresponding control function associated with the movement/gesture. Thus, the stylus in hover mode acts as sort of a “magic wand” that a user may point, wave, flick, rotate, and otherwise manipulate to cause corresponding actions by a computing device based upon decoding of one or more images projected from the stylus in response to manipulation of the stylus. The hover mode may be supported in a defined zone extending out from the display surface and at a distance from the display. For example, hover mode and corresponding optical interactions may be enabled at a range of distances from at an inch or so above the display surface to several feet from the display, and even at greater distances, such as from across a MOM.

At or near the surface of a display, a writing mode may be activated in response to projection of corresponding images that trigger the writing mode. For instance, detection of a particular image for the writing mode via optical sensors of a display may trigger writing mode. It should be noted that optical detection techniques may be used alone or conjunction with other techniques. For example, proximity sensors, capacitive sensors, and the like may be combined with optical sensing techniques to detect positioning of the stylus tip at or near the display surface and/or to toggle between modes accordingly. Writing mode may also be activated when the stylus is positioned at a distance from the display in some embodiments. For instance, writing mode may be triggered responsive to operation of a mode switch that cause images for the writing mode to be directed to the display. Generally, in writing mode digital ink traces are applied to emulate writing, drawing, painting, and so forth. Writing mode may also emulate natural pressure sensitive writing as described in greater detail below.

To further illustrate, consider now a discussion of few example configurations for a stylus in accordance with one more embodiments. In one approach, a stylus may be configured to project a single fixed image/pattern. Such a fixed pattern system may be implemented using a single DOE and laser diode configured to project the single fixed image/pattern. Here, the single fixed image may be used to determine any or all of the six degrees of freedom (6DOF) of the stylus as mentioned previously. Toggling projection of the image on and off via a mode switch may also be employed to switch between different modes. For instance, a mode button 212 may be selectively depressed to toggle selected stylus modes on or off in a binary fashion. In one example, a mode button 212 may be configured to toggle between hover mode and writing mode.

In another configuration, a stylus may be designed to project multiple different images that may be used to convey different kinds of stylus interaction information. By way of example, one image projection may be used to convey spatial position while a separate projection is used to convey mode information. Other kinds of projections are also contemplated, such as separate projections used to convey a stylus identification image and/or to implement a visible beam/image for a pointer function. Multiple images that are used for different purposes may be projected concurrently as well as at different times, such as by using different respective light sources, elements, and beams to form multiple different image projection streams. Thus, multiple independent image projection streams may be employed in some scenarios.

In another approach, the same image projection stream may be configured to project different images at different times. By way of example and not limitation, one image projection stream may be used to project a stylus identification image during initialization/calibration of the stylus, one or more images suitable for resolving spatial orientation (e.g., 6DOF) in a hover mode, and/or one or more images suitable to convey different writing/drawing attributes in a writing mode. This may occur by illuminating different image elements 204 that encode different images at different times. In particular, the mode manager module 126 may operate to cause the projection system 122 to form different images 124 in different contexts and/or in response to mode changes determined via a mode switch or otherwise.

In at least some embodiments, a pressure switch 214 may also be employed to trigger a writing mode based at least in part upon contact of a stylus tip 210 with a display. The pressure switch 214 represents functionality to enable measurement of different pressure levels applied to the stylus tip 210. For example, a resistive pressure transducer may be employed to sense pressure applied to the tip. In another approach, pressure may be sensed optically using a prism or photodiode to sense variable amounts of light that are mapped to different pressure levels. Further, different images and/or corresponding modes of operation may be mapped to the different pressure levels. Thus, contact of stylus tip 210 may cause pressure measurement by the pressure switch 214 that activates the writing mode through projection of corresponding images. A sequence of images corresponding to different writing pressure levels may be projected as the measured pressure level changes. In this manner, attributes of digital ink traces applied for writing, painting, and/or drawing may be adjusted to respond in a natural, pressure-sensitive way to changes in pressure on the stylus tip 210.

In particular, digital ink traces generally may be adjusted to become darker and/or thicker as pressure placed on the stylus tip increases to emulate the way in which physical markings change with increased pressure on a pen, paintbrush, or other instrument. In other words, pressure sensitive writing is emulated by adjusting digital ink traces applied via the stylus to match a pressure level defined by a corresponding projected image. Other writing/drawing attributes may also be conveyed in a comparable manner by mapping the attributes to different images and patterns. By way of example and not limitation, selections of drawing tools, font types, colors, line styles, brush/pen type, and other attributes may be conveyed by projection of images that are mapped to the attributes. In at least some embodiments selections of various attributes may be accomplished using corresponding stylus-based gestures.

More generally, the environment described herein for optical stylus interaction enables definition and recognition of various stylus-based gestures. This may include gestures for selection of different writing/drawing attributes noted above as well as other gestures for device control, content navigation, user interface manipulation, and so forth. In addition, different gestures may be implemented in different modes. Gestures may be defined based upon measurement of spatial position of the stylus and/or sequential changes in the spatial position that are ascertained using optically conveyed information.

By way of example and not limitation, in hover mode a twisting or rotating gesture in which the stylus is rotated around the z-axis may drive forward and back navigation between different pages for a browser, presentation, or electronic book; a wrist flick gesture may be configured to select an item and/or open an item; waving the stylus up/down or left/right may cause a scrolling like response; moving the stylus up and down in the z-direction may cause zooming in and out, and so forth. In writing mode, a twisting or rotating gesture may facilitate selection of different writing/drawing attributes, a wrist flick gesture may be cause a spattering pattern of ink traces to appear (like spattering paint), a sweeping gesture may operate an erase function, and so forth. Thus, a variety of stylus-based gestures may be implemented of which the gestures enumerated above are but a few illustrative examples.

In some cases, a display device 112 may be configured to employ some form of ambient light cancellation. In such scenarios, an image projected by a stylus 118 runs the risk of being interpreted as ambient light and be canceled out. As such, a projection system 122 may be configured to account for ambient light cancellation and adjust projections accordingly. This may include configuring image projections for particular wavelengths or ranges that are not canceled and/or pulsing projections in sync with a display. For instance, illumination light for the display may be pulsed in order to differentiate between local light and ambient light and cancel out ambient light. Accordingly, to avoid interpretation of image projections as ambient light, a projection system 122 may be configured to include a photonic detector/receiver, such as a photodiode, that may be used to detect pulsing and sync projections with pulsed illumination light used for a display. Pulsing projections in this manner may additionally serve to improve battery life since projections may occur intermittently at short time intervals in which sensors of the display are integrating the image content.

FIG. 3 depicts generally at 300 an example sequence of images that may be mapped to different pressure levels to implement pressure sensitive writing. Naturally, different images may be mapped to other writing/drawing attributes as well as different operational modes in a comparable manner. It just so happens that in this example, the image projected by a stylus is configured to change based on changes in writing pressure applied to the stylus.

In particular, scanning of a beam 208 across a series of image elements 204 is represented by the series of different images shown in FIG. 3. As mentioned, the image elements 204 may be configured as DOEs encoding respective holograms that may be illuminated by a suitable laser source. Other equivalent imaging techniques may also be employed. The beam location 302 of the beam 208 may be controlled and adjusted based upon changes in pressure detected via a pressure switch 214 (or other mode switch input). This causes the beam to illuminate different elements and/or output different projected images 304 for different pressure levels. In this example, four image elements 204 are employed to form seven different images labeled by letters A through G. Here, when the beam intersects boundaries of two elements, content from both of the two elements may be illuminated thus giving the seven different example images. Relatively simple patterns, glyphs, icons or other images may be employed to convey different levels or modes. Additionally or alternatively, images may also be configured to contain asymmetric content and combinations of arcs and lines as mentioned previously to facilitate decoding of spatial position in appropriate situations.

Although four image elements 204 are shown in this example, a fewer or greater number of image elements 204 may be employed in different scenarios. Generally, the number of different elements and therefore the number of levels or modes that may be accommodated by an image sequence is dependent upon the size of the holograms and the beam footprint as well as consideration of the range of pressure input (or other mode switch input) and practical constraints on stylus size.

Having considered an example environment and details for an optically enabled stylus, consider now some example procedures for optical stylus interaction in accordance with one or more embodiments.

Example Procedures

The following discussion describes optical stylus interaction techniques that may be implemented utilizing the previously described systems and devices. Aspects of each of the procedures may be implemented in hardware, firmware, or software, or a combination thereof. The procedures are shown as a set of blocks that specify operations performed by one or more devices and are not necessarily limited to the orders shown for performing the operations by the respective blocks. In portions of the following discussion, reference may be made to the example operating environment of FIG. 1 and example stylus details discussed in relation to FIGS. 2 and 3.

FIG. 4 depicts a procedure 400 in an example implementation in which optical techniques are used to resolve a spatial position of a stylus. One or more images that are projected onto a display using a stylus are detected (block 402). For example, a SIP panel display or other display device 112 having optical sensors may detect images produced via a projection system 122 of a stylus 118 via an input/output module 114 or otherwise. Various different kinds of images 124 may be projected in different scenarios. Optical sensors generally detect the images projected onto the display by measuring changes in illumination caused by the image projection.

The one or more images are decoded to resolve a spatial position of the stylus relative to the display device (block 404). For example, input/output module 114 may include or make use of an image decoder module 120 to decode detected images. Here, the image decoder module 120 is configured to analyze image attributes (e.g., size, position, distortion, rotation, and so forth) to ascertain the spatial position of the stylus that corresponds to the projected the image. The image decoder module 120 may resolve spatial position of the stylus for six degrees of freedom as discussed in relation to FIG. 2. In general, optical stylus interaction techniques including detecting and decoding of images by a computing are based upon optical projections of the one or more images by the stylus. Such optical projections do not rely upon or involve radio frequency (RF) communications between the stylus and target device.

Certain features of an image may be selected by design to facilitate resolving spatial position of the stylus for six degrees of freedom. By way of example, the origin, pointing, and angular extent of the projected image may be known by design, or may be assessed by measurement. Accordingly, projected content may be designed to contain circular and/or annular elements that, when projected, may be analyzed relative to a known pattern for the origin, pointing and angular content/extent of the image to recognize changes as position of the stylus changes. Likewise, changes in the size of the image may also be detected. Changes in image size and various image elements can be used to determine the z-height of the stylus.

Additionally, line width around the perimeter or borders of a projected image may be used to ascertain an angular direction pointing back to a stylus. In turn, the angular direction can be employed to determine x-y position of the stylus in relation of the display surface. Line width variations may be included around the border/perimeter of an image to facilitate position assessment and avoid ambiguities. A circular or annular image with line width variation may be designed to enable resolution of five degrees of freedom. Further, addition of a fiducial marker and/or asymmetric elements within the projected image, such as a line perpendicular to the perimeter, or a dot, enables assessment of rotational or ‘clocking’ position. Therefore, generally speaking, an image that combines circular or annular elements with line width variation and a fiducial marker can enable resolution of six degrees of freedom for the stylus. One or more actions are performed corresponding to the spatial position that is resolved by decoding of the one or more images (block 406). For example, the image decoder module 120 may provide information on spatial position that may be used by the input/output module 114 to recognize various stylus gestures, some examples of which were described previously. Accordingly, actions corresponding to a recognized stylus gesture may be performed. For instance, movement of the stylus to different spatial positions may be detected and used for cursor control and/or to recognize gestures. A particular recognized gesture, such as rotating or “clocking” the stylus around the z-axis, may be detected based on successive spatial positions of the stylus. For instance, gestures may be recognized by determining relative changes in orientation of the projected content and/or a portion of the projected content based on a fiducial marker or asymmetric elements. The particular recognized gesture may cause a corresponding action, such as turning a page or navigating a user interface menu. Position information regarding the stylus may also be used to drive changes between different operational modes.

FIG. 5 depicts a procedure 500 in an example implementation in which images projected by a stylus are recognized to drive corresponding actions by a device. One or more images projected onto a display device via a stylus are recognized (block 502). As before, this may include a wide variety of images 124 used to convey different interaction information as described in relation to FIGS. 1-3. For example, different images may be projected to convey a stylus identifier, spatial position, operational modes, writing pressure levels, and so forth. An image decoder module 120 or other comparable functionality of a device may operate to decode the images.

A context for interaction with a computing device using the stylus is ascertained based on the recognition of the one or more images (block 504) and actions associated with the ascertained context are performed (block 506). For example, different images may be indicative of gestures, commands, stylus position and movement, and other interaction conducted with the stylus. The images may be mapped to corresponding actions to be performed when the images or stylus-based gestures are recognized. A context for interaction of the stylus may be defined based on stylus information such as a mode for the stylus, the particular image projected, current spatial position of the stylus, and movement of the stylus. The context may also include device information such as a cursor position, an active interface and/or application, item or window focus/selection, and so forth. Thus, a particular image that is projected may represent a corresponding context that can be identified based on recognition of the particular image. Based on the ascertained context, the input/output module 114 or other comparable functionality of a device may determine appropriate responsive actions to take, such as cursor movement, action associated with a gesture, a switch between modes, navigation functions, launching or closing an application, and so forth.

FIG. 6 depicts a procedure 600 in an example implementation in which a stylus projects images to convey interaction information regarding the stylus. Images available for projection by a stylus are mapped to different states for a stylus (block 602). For example, different images 124 and/or patterns that may be projected by a stylus 118 may be mapped to different states including different pressure levels, different modes, and/or different spatial positions as discussed previously. A mode manager module 126 of a stylus may include a table, database, file or other suitable mapping information to map the different states to corresponding images.

A current state of the different states for the stylus is determined (block 604). For instance, the mode manager module 126 of the stylus may obtain information regarding the current state from various mode switches and/or other sensors of the stylus. This enables the mode manager module 126 to compute the current state and cause projection of an image corresponding to the current state.

An image indicative of the current state is projected by the stylus for decoding at a computing device to ascertain the current state (block 606). Here, the mode manager module 126 may reference mapping information to look-up an image that is to be projected based on the current state or otherwise select between different images that a stylus is capable of projecting based on the current state. The mode manager module 126 may then cause the projection system of the stylus to project an appropriate image. Once projected, the image may be interpreted by a target computing device as described previously and corresponding operations and actions may be triggered.

FIG. 7 depicts a procedure 700 in an example implementation in which a stylus projects an image indicative of an active mode. Activation of a mode for a stylus is detected (block 702). The detection may occur in any suitable way. For example, activation of a mode may be detected by a mode manager module 126 based on operation of a mode switch as described previously. In another example, a mode (such as hover mode or writing mode) may be triggered based upon a gesture or spatial positioning of a stylus. Additionally, a mode (such as a stylus identification mode) may be triggered by an initialization sequence when a stylus is powered on. Detectable modes may also include different writing pressure modes corresponding to discrete pressure levels measured by a pressure switch.

An image indicative of the activated mode is projected from the stylus for decoding by a computing device to ascertain the active mode (block 704). In other words, an image corresponding to the activated mode is projected for detection and processing by the computing device 102. For instance, a stylus identification image incorporating an identifier may be used to identify a particular stylus and or distinguish between different styluses in a stylus identification mode. Images mapped to pressure levels may be projected in a writing mode as described previously. In addition or alternatively, images suitable to resolve spatial positioning, control a cursor, and/or recognize gestures may be projected for activated modes as appropriate. Thus, the computing device 102 is able to determine the mode through optically conveyed information and take appropriate responsive action to toggle between modes, perform commands and operations designated by the optically conveyed information, and so forth.

Having considered some example procedures for optical stylus interaction techniques, consider now a discussion of an example system and components of the system that may be employed to implement aspects of the described techniques in one or more embodiments.

Example System

FIG. 8 illustrates an example system 800 that includes an example computing device 802 that is representative of one or more computing systems and/or devices that may implement the various techniques described herein. The computing device 802 may be, for example, a server of a service provider, a device associated with the client (e.g., a client device), an on-chip system, and/or any other suitable computing device or computing system.

The example computing device 802 as illustrated includes a processing system 804, one or more computer-readable media 806, and one or more I/O interfaces 808 that are communicatively coupled, one to another. Although not shown, the computing device 802 may further include a system bus or other data and command transfer system that couples the various components, one to another. A system bus can include any one or combination of different bus structures, such as a memory bus or memory controller, a peripheral bus, a universal serial bus, and/or a processor or local bus that utilizes any of a variety of bus architectures. A variety of other examples are also contemplated, such as control and data lines.

The processing system 804 is representative of functionality to perform one or more operations using hardware. Accordingly, the processing system 804 is illustrated as including hardware elements 810 that may be configured as processors, functional blocks, and so forth. This may include implementation in hardware as an application specific integrated circuit or other logic device formed using one or more semiconductors. The hardware elements 810 are not limited by the materials from which they are formed or the processing mechanisms employed therein. For example, processors may be comprised of semiconductor(s) and/or transistors (e.g., electronic integrated circuits (ICs)). In such a context, processor-executable instructions may be electronically-executable instructions.

The computer-readable media 806 is illustrated as including memory/storage 812. The memory/storage 812 represents memory/storage capacity associated with one or more computer-readable media. The memory/storage 812 may include volatile media (such as random access memory (RAM)) and/or nonvolatile media (such as read only memory (ROM), Flash memory, optical disks, magnetic disks, and so forth). The memory/storage 812 may include fixed media (e.g., RAM, ROM, a fixed hard drive, and so on) as well as removable media (e.g., Flash memory, a removable hard drive, an optical disc, and so forth). The computer-readable media 806 may be configured in a variety of other ways as further described below.

Input/output interface(s) 808 are representative of functionality to allow a user to enter commands and information to computing device 802, and also allow information to be presented to the user and/or other components or devices using various input/output devices. Examples of input devices include a keyboard, a cursor control device (e.g., a mouse), a microphone for voice input/control, a scanner, touch functionality (e.g., capacitive or other sensors that are configured to detect physical touch), a camera (e.g., which may employ visible or non-visible wavelengths such as infrared frequencies to detect movement that does not involve touch as gestures), and so forth. Examples of output devices include a display device (e.g., a monitor or projector), speakers, a printer, a network card, tactile-response device, and so forth. Thus, the computing device 802 may be configured in a variety of ways as further described below to support user interaction.

Various techniques may be described herein in the general context of software, hardware elements, or program modules. Generally, such modules include routines, programs, objects, elements, components, data structures, and so forth that perform particular tasks or implement particular abstract data types. The terms “module,” “functionality,” and “component” as used herein generally represent software, firmware, hardware, or a combination thereof. The features of the techniques described herein are platform-independent, meaning that the techniques may be implemented on a variety of commercial computing platforms having a variety of processors.

An implementation of the described modules and techniques may be stored on or transmitted across some form of computer-readable media. The computer-readable media may include a variety of media that may be accessed by the computing device 802. By way of example, and not limitation, computer-readable media may include “computer-readable storage media” and “communication media.”

“Computer-readable storage media” may refer to media and/or devices that enable persistent and/or non-transitory storage of information in contrast to mere signal transmission, carrier waves, or signals per se. Thus, computer-readable storage media refers to non-signal bearing media. The computer-readable storage media includes hardware such as volatile and non-volatile, removable and non-removable media and/or storage devices implemented in a method or technology suitable for storage of information such as computer readable instructions, data structures, program modules, logic elements/circuits, or other data. Examples of computer-readable storage media may include, but are not limited to, RAM, ROM, EEPROM, flash memory or other memory technology, CD-ROM, digital versatile disks (DVD) or other optical storage, hard disks, magnetic cassettes, magnetic tape, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage devices, or other storage device, tangible media, or article of manufacture suitable to store the desired information and which may be accessed by a computer.

“Communication media” may refer to a signal-bearing medium that is configured to transmit instructions to the hardware of the computing device 802, such as via a network. Communication media typically may embody computer readable instructions, data structures, program modules, or other data in a modulated data signal, such as carrier waves, data signals, or other transport mechanism. Communication media also include any information delivery media. The term “modulated data signal” means a signal that has one or more of its characteristics set or changed in such a manner as to encode information in the signal. By way of example, and not limitation, communication media include wired media such as a wired network or direct-wired connection, and wireless media such as acoustic, RF, infrared, and other wireless media.

As previously described, hardware elements 810 and computer-readable media 806 are representative of instructions, modules, programmable device logic and/or fixed device logic implemented in a hardware form that may be employed in some embodiments to implement at least some aspects of the techniques described herein. Hardware elements may include components of an integrated circuit or on-chip system, an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field-programmable gate array (FPGA), a complex programmable logic device (CPLD), and other implementations in silicon or other hardware devices. In this context, a hardware element may operate as a processing device that performs program tasks defined by instructions, modules, and/or logic embodied by the hardware element as well as a hardware device utilized to store instructions for execution, e.g., the computer-readable storage media described previously.

Combinations of the foregoing may also be employed to implement various techniques and modules described herein. Accordingly, software, hardware, or program modules including device applications 110, input/output module 114, image decoder module 120, mode manager module 126 and other program modules may be implemented as one or more instructions and/or logic embodied on some form of computer-readable storage media and/or by one or more hardware elements 810. The computing device 802 may be configured to implement particular instructions and/or functions corresponding to the software and/or hardware modules. Accordingly, implementation of modules as a module that is executable by the computing device 802 as software may be achieved at least partially in hardware, e.g., through use of computer-readable storage media and/or hardware elements 810 of the processing system. The instructions and/or functions may be executable/operable by one or more articles of manufacture (for example, one or more computing devices 802 and/or processing systems 804) to implement techniques, modules, and examples described herein.

As further illustrated in FIG. 8, the example system 800 enables ubiquitous environments for a seamless user experience when running applications on a personal computer (PC), a television device, and/or a mobile device. Services and applications run substantially similar in all three environments for a common user experience when transitioning from one device to the next while utilizing an application, playing a video game, watching a video, and so on.

In the example system 800, multiple devices are interconnected through a central computing device. The central computing device may be local to the multiple devices or may be located remotely from the multiple devices. In one embodiment, the central computing device may be a cloud of one or more server computers that are connected to the multiple devices through a network, the Internet, or other data communication link.

In one embodiment, this interconnection architecture enables functionality to be delivered across multiple devices to provide a common and seamless experience to a user of the multiple devices. Each of the multiple devices may have different physical requirements and capabilities, and the central computing device uses a platform to enable the delivery of an experience to the device that is both tailored to the device and yet common to all devices. In one embodiment, a class of target devices is created and experiences are tailored to the generic class of devices. A class of devices may be defined by physical features, types of usage, or other common characteristics of the devices.

In various implementations, the computing device 802 may assume a variety of different configurations, such as for computer 814, mobile 816, and television 818 uses. Each of these configurations includes devices that may have generally different constructs and capabilities, and thus the computing device 802 may be configured according to one or more of the different device classes. For instance, the computing device 802 may be implemented as the computer 814 class of a device that includes a personal computer, desktop computer, a multi-screen computer, laptop computer, netbook, and so on.

The computing device 802 may also be implemented as the mobile 816 class of device that includes mobile devices, such as a mobile phone, portable music player, portable gaming device, a tablet computer, a multi-screen computer, and so on. The computing device 802 may also be implemented as the television 818 class of device that includes devices having or connected to generally larger screens in casual viewing environments. These devices include televisions, set-top boxes, gaming consoles, and so on.

The techniques described herein may be supported by these various configurations of the computing device 802 and are not limited to the specific examples of the techniques described herein. This is illustrated through inclusion of the image decoder module 120 on the computing device 802. The functionality of the image decoder module 120 and other modules may also be implemented all or in part through use of a distributed system, such as over a “cloud” 820 via a platform 822 as described below.

The cloud 820 includes and/or is representative of a platform 822 for resources 824. The platform 822 abstracts underlying functionality of hardware (e.g., servers) and software resources of the cloud 820. The resources 824 may include applications and/or data that can be utilized while computer processing is executed on servers that are remote from the computing device 802. Resources 824 can also include services provided over the Internet and/or through a subscriber network, such as a cellular or Wi-Fi network.

The platform 822 may abstract resources and functions to connect the computing device 802 with other computing devices. The platform 822 may also serve to abstract scaling of resources to provide a corresponding level of scale to encountered demand for the resources 824 that are implemented via the platform 822. Accordingly, in an interconnected device embodiment, implementation of functionality described herein may be distributed throughout the system 800. For example, the functionality may be implemented in part on the computing device 802 as well as via the platform 822 that abstracts the functionality of the cloud 820.

CONCLUSION

Although the invention has been described in language specific to structural features and/or methodological acts, it is to be understood that the invention defined in the appended claims is not necessarily limited to the specific features or acts described. Rather, the specific features and acts are disclosed as example forms of implementing the claimed invention.

Claims

1. A computing device comprising: a display device including one or more optical sensors configured to detect images projected onto a surface of the display device by a stylus;an image decoder module configured to: decode a detected image to ascertain a corresponding context for interaction with the computing device using the stylus by recognizing the detected image from multiple different images that each represent different contexts, the multiple different images each corresponding to a graphic that results from illuminating a series of image elements of the stylus differently than the series of image elements is illuminated for other graphics; andcause performance of one or more actions by the computing device that are associated with the ascertained context.

2. A computing device as described in claim 1, wherein the display device comprises a sensor-in-pixel (SIP) panel having the optical sensors associated with respective pixels of the display device.

3. A computing device as described in claim 1, wherein the image decoder module is further configured to resolve the spatial position of the stylus based upon decoding of the detected image.

4. A computing device as described in claim 1, wherein: the image decoder module is further configured to recognize a gesture input via the stylus based upon decoding of the detected image; andthe one or more actions correspond to the recognized gesture.

5. A computing device as described in claim 1, wherein: the context comprises an operational mode for interaction with the computing device using the stylus that is defined by the detected image; andperformance of one or more actions comprises switching to the operational mode.

6. A computing device as described in claim 1, wherein the image decoder module is further configured to detect movement of the stylus based upon decoding of the detected image.

7. A computing device as described in claim 1, wherein: the detected image defines a pressure level for a writing mode of the stylus; andthe one or more actions comprise emulating pressure sensitive writing by adjusting attributes of digital ink traces applied via the stylus to match the pressure level defined by the detected image.

8. A computing device as described in claim 1, wherein the image decoder module is further configured to determine an identity of the stylus based upon an identifier for the stylus that is projected as part of the detected image.

9. A method implemented by one or more modules at least partially in hardware of a computing device, the method comprising: detecting one or more images projected onto a display device associated with the computing device using a stylus;resolving a spatial position of the stylus relative to the display device by: decoding the one or more projected images that, when decoded, reveal information that is indicative of the spatial position relative to the display device, the decoding including analyzing the one or more projected images relative to known patterns of a mapping of multiple different projectable images that each represent different information indicative of the spatial position, at least one of the multiple different projectable images corresponding to a graphic containing asymmetric content that is analyzable to facilitate resolution of the spatial position; andascertaining projection characteristics of the one or more projected images that are further indicative of the spatial position relative to the display device; andperforming one or more actions corresponding to the spatial position that is resolved by the decoding of the one or more projected images and the ascertaining of the projection characteristics of the one or more projected images.

10. A method as described in claim 9, further comprising: recognizing an image projected by the stylus that is indicative of a writing mode of the stylus and conveys information regarding a pressure level to apply to digital ink traces input via the stylus; andin response to recognition of the image indicative of the writing mode, activating the writing mode and causing digital ink traces input via the stylus to have attributes defined for the pressure level conveyed by the image.

11. A method as described in claim 9, wherein the images are detected via one or more optical sensors incorporated with the display device.

12. A method as described in claim 9, wherein the detecting and the decoding of the one or more projected images by the computing device are based on optical projections of the one or more projected images by the stylus that do not involve radio frequency (RF) communications.

13. A method as described in claim 9, wherein ascertaining the projection characteristics of the one or more projected images to resolve the spatial position comprises determining a height of the stylus relative to the display based at least in part upon size calculations for the one or more projected images.

14. A method as described in claim 9, wherein ascertaining the projection characteristics of the one or more projected images to resolve the spatial position comprises processing the asymmetric content of the one or more projected images to identify a rotational position of the stylus around an optical axis along which the one or more projected images are projected.

15. A method as described in claim 9, wherein ascertaining the projection characteristics of the one or more projected images to resolve the spatial position comprises resolving the spatial position for six degrees of freedom of the stylus based on analysis of image size, distortion of image elements, and orientation of the asymmetric content for the one or more projected images.

16. A method as described in claim 9, wherein decoding the one or more projected images to resolve the spatial position comprises recognizing a gesture based upon a detection of movement of the stylus in accordance with the spatial position.

17. A method as described in claim 9, wherein the one or more actions comprise control functions to manipulate operations of the computing device determined based in part upon the spatial position.

18. A stylus comprising: a projection system;one or more image elements embodying image information for corresponding images to enable projection of the images via the projection system to a target computing device; anda mode manager module configured to cause the projection system to project different images using the image information embodied by the one or more image elements in response to manipulation of the stylus, the different images each comprising a different combination of graphical content and projected to convey different interaction information for the stylus optically for decoding by the target computing device, the different projected images interpretable by the target computing device with projection characteristics of detected projected images to recognize one or more of a spatial position of the stylus, an activated mode for the stylus, or a gesture produced by manipulation of the stylus.

19. A stylus as described in claim 18, wherein: the one or more image elements comprise diffractive optical elements having image information to reproduce recorded holographic images; andthe projection system comprises a laser projection system that employs a laser diode to illuminate the diffractive optical elements and form the corresponding images to convey the interaction information optically to the target computing device.

20. A stylus as described in claim 18, further comprising a pressure switch to measure pressure applied to a tip of the stylus, wherein the mode manager module is further configured to: determine a pressure level measured by the pressure switch; andcause the projection system to project a particular image indicative of the determined pressure level to enable the target computing device to adjust attributes of digital ink traces input via the stylus to match the determined pressure level that is conveyed optically by the particular image.