Patent Application
20100302212
Devices that operate with natural user interfaces have become increasingly popular in recent times. The interface enhances the user's experience by enabling the user to directly manipulate the device using a finger or other input tool. The interface of such a device is often developed to respond to the touch of an “average” finger. However, due to wide variations in finger sizes and other finger attributes, user interactions with the device may be error-prone, and the end-user experience may be unsatisfactory.
Touch personalization for a display device is disclosed. One example embodiment includes a touch display, a collection module, a characterization module, and an adjustment module. The collection module may be configured to identify one or more touch attributes of an input tool interacting with the touch display, each touch attribute representing an interaction characteristic of the input tool with the display. The characterization module may be configured to generate a touch map based on the one or more touch attributes. The adjustment module may be configured to set one or more input-receiving parameters of an interface displayed on the touch display based on the touch map.
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 to limit the scope of the claimed subject matter. Furthermore, the claimed subject matter is not limited to implementations that solve any or all disadvantages noted in any part of this disclosure.
Touch personalization of a computing device, such as a touch display device, is disclosed herein. Based on different touch attributes of a user-specific input tool, such as a user finger, a touch interface of the touch display device may be adjusted. As a non-limiting example, the interface may be differently adjusted when the user's finger is small and narrow versus when the user's finger is large and broad. As described in more detail below, by adaptively learning from touch interactions between the user's finger and the touch display device, and by dynamically updating the device's touch interface accordingly, the user's experience with the device is enhanced.
An interface 106 is displayed on touch display 102. The interface 106 may include one or more interface elements 108. The interface may be configured to recognize touch input from one or more fingers or other input tools (i.e., single-touch or multi-touch input). The interface may also be configured to recognize different kinds of touch input. Non-limiting examples of such touch inputs include a single tap, multiple taps, a stroke, or a gesture.
Computing device 100 includes a collection module 110 configured to identify one or more touch attributes of the input tool 104 interacting with the touch display 102. As further elaborated with reference to
Computing device 100 also includes a characterization module 112. As further elaborated with reference to
The characterization module 112 may include an update module 113 configured to dynamically update the touch map based on continuous interactions of the input tool 104 with the touch display 102. That is, with every touch interaction of each input tool 104 with the touch display 102, the characterization module 112 may update and refine the contours and boundaries of the corresponding touch map 116.
The characterization module may also be configured to set a touch focus of the input tool based on the one or more touch attributes collected by the collection module 220. The touch focus may represent a focal point of the touch map. In one example, the focal point may also be a center point of the touch map. In another example, the position of the focal point may be weighted based on the various touch attributes associated with the corresponding input tool.
The computing device 100 further includes an adjustment module 120 configured to set one or more input-receiving parameters of the interface 106 displayed on the touch display 102 based on the touch map 116 generated by the characterization module 112. As further elaborated with reference to
The adjustment module(s) may be configured to make adjustments for a particular application, a particular website, or virtually any other particular context. As a nonlimiting example, a user's favorite news site may provide a personalized interaction model and controls. That is, a user may use a personalized touch map to enhance the experience when using that user's favorite news site. The news site may heavily utilize reading, clipping, and annotating controls. As such, the adjustment module for that site may be configured to interpret the touch profile to make a highlighting/annotation tool the right thickness based on the user's finger size. Similarly, the user's clipping tool, which uses the pinch and stretch gesture, may be customized to the reach of the user's fingers.
In some embodiments, an adjustment module 120 may make adjustments in consideration of the touch characteristics of a particular device. For example, a device with a five inch screen may interpret a touch profile differently than a device with a three inch screen.
One or more computing device 100 may be connected to a user-profile server 122 via a network 124, such as the Internet. The user-profile server 122 may comprise a touch profile store 126 including one or more touch profiles 128. Each of the one or more touch profiles may include information useable by a computing device to set one or more input-receiving parameters of the interface 106 displayed on its touch display 102. Each touch profile 128 may include information associated with a corresponding user. As one example, a touch profile 128 may include a user-specific identity, such as user-specific login name. As another example, a touch profile 128 may include one or more user-specific touch maps 116 corresponding to one or more commonly used user input tools (such as one or more commonly used fingers). Additionally, the touch profile 128 may include combinations of user-specific identities and touch maps.
In this way, information that can be used to enhance a user's experience with a device can be made accessible, via a network, to a variety of different user devices. Furthermore, various different profiles may be saved and made accessible, via a network, to a single user, so that the experience for that user can be customized for a particular public or private device, a particular application, a particular website, or virtually any other particular context. In this way, based on the identity of a user, a device may retrieve an appropriate profile from the network so that the user's experience may be enhanced for the scenario in which the user is currently operating.
The user-profile server 122 includes an input module 130 configured to receive a touch-profile indicator 114 from a computing device 100 to help identify the user. A selection module 132 of the user-profile server 122 may then select a touch profile 128 from the touch profile store 126 based on the received touch-profile indicator 114. In one scenario, when the touch profile indicator 114 includes a user-specific identifier, the selection module 132 may select a touch profile 128 by matching the user-specific identifier with a user-specific identity associated with a touch profile 128 in the touch profile store 126. In one example, an exact match may be required to correctly identify the user.
In another scenario, when the touch profile indicator 114 includes a touch map, the selection module 132 selects a touch profile 128 by comparing the touch map with one or more touch profiles 128 included in the profile store 126 and determining a match value between the touch map and each of the one or more touch profiles 128. The selection module 132 may then choose a touch profile based on the match value. The match value may be compared to a match threshold value. In one example, if the match value is above the match threshold value, an exact match may be determined. In another example, if the match value is below the match threshold value, an exact match may not be determined and the selection module may, instead, offer a “best-guess” touch profile (that is, a match with the highest match value). Alternatively, the selection module may offer a “generic” touch profile. For example, the selection module may determine that the touch map associated with the queried touch profile indicator 114 includes touch attributes for a left-handed user with relatively small-sized fingers. Accordingly, the selection module may select a generic “left-handed small finger” touch profile.
Upon selection of a touch profile 128 by the selection module 132, an output module 134 of the user-profile server 122 may be configured to send the selected touch profile 128 to the computing device 100. Upon receiving the touch profile 128 from the user-profile server 122, the settings of the interface 106 of the computing device 100 may be adjusted responsive to the received touch profile 128 and its included touch map.
In some embodiments, a local touch profile store may be included as part of computing device 100. In such embodiments, computing device 100 may select a touch profile from a plurality of locally available touch profiles without accessing a remote touch profile store via a network.
The systems described herein may be tied to a variety of different computing devices. The examples shown in the following figures are directed towards a computing device in the form of a mobile touch-display device. However, a variety of different types of touch computing devices may be used without departing from the scope of this disclosure. While
As such, the nature of the interaction characteristics 208, and consequently touch attributes 206, may be largely affected by the nature of the input tool selected. In one scenario, as depicted, when the input tool is a user finger 204, the interaction of the user finger 204 with the touch display 202 may be affected by the handedness of the user (for example, whether the user is left-handed or right-handed). The handedness of the user may affect, for example, a tilt or orientation with which the user touches the user finger 204 on the touch display 202. Similarly, the handedness may affect, for example, the touch area of the user finger 204 that makes contact with the touch display 202. Furthermore, the attributes may change based on which finger (for example, index finger versus thumb) the user selects as the input tool, as well as the number of fingers the user selects as the input tool (for example, left index finger versus left and right thumbs).
The interaction characteristics 208 collected by a collection module of the touch display device 200 may include, for example, a touch area, that is, a section of the touch display 202 that the user finger 204 actually makes contact with. In another example, the interaction characteristics 208 may include a touch orientation, that is, an angle at which the user finger 204 touches the touch display 202. In yet another example, the interaction characteristics 208 may include a touch color, that is, a tint of the user finger 204 that makes contact with the touch display 202. In still another example, the interaction characteristics 208 may include a touch pattern.
Interaction characteristics may also include an offset indicator that represents a difference (e.g., magnitude and direction) between a location where a touch input is actually resolved by a touch display and a location of a target that the user was asked to touch. Such an offset indicator may be used to adjust a touch focus of the input tool so that the location to which a touch display resolves a touch input closely corresponds to the location that the user intends to touch.
The touch attributes 206, reflective of the various interaction characteristics 208, may be observed and/or inferred based on vision, capacitance, resistance, and/or other properties, depending on the technology used by the touch display 202 to recognize the touch input. In the depicted example, where the user is requested to touch target 210 with the selected user finger 204, the touch attributes 206 are observed relative to the shown target 210 so that variances in touch can be accounted for and a user-specific touch map 216 may be accordingly generated. In one scenario, when using a right-hand index finger as the input tool, the user may tend to touch the target 210 with a left-tilt. Furthermore, the touch area may be relatively small. In another scenario, when using a left hand thumb as the input tool, the user may tend to touch the target 210 with a right-tilt, and with a relatively large touch area.
The characterization module generates a touch map 216, which is schematically shown and corresponds to the user finger 204 based on the touch attributes 206 received. An initial touch map may be generated during calibration. Then, during the course of touch display device 200 operation by the user, the characterization module may optionally dynamically update the initial touch map based on continued interactions of the user finger 204 with the touch display 202. As previously elaborated with reference to
In the example scenario shown in
In the example scenario shown in
In some embodiments, the interface 306 may be additionally or optionally adjusted based on an orientation of the touch display device 200. For example, when the touch display device is in a vertical orientation, the touch display device may be more likely to be operated with a single input tool (such as a single index finger). In contrast, for example, when the touch display device is in a horizontal orientation, the touch display device may be more likely to be operated with multiple input tools (such as two thumbs). The characterization module may have generated one or more touch maps based on the touch attributes of the one or more user fingers selected by the user for use as the input tool(s). The adjustment module may be configured to select a touch map based on the orientation of the touch display device and set the input-receiving parameters displayed on the interface of the touch display device in accordance with the chosen touch map(s).
In one example scenario, the characterization module may have generated a dominant right-finger touch map and right and left thumb touch maps. When the touch display device is determined to be in a horizontal orientation, that is, when the touch display device is likely to be used with a left and right thumb, the adjustment module may be configured to adjust the left portion of the interface based on the left-thumb touch map while adjusting the right portion of the interface based on the right-thumb touch map.
In contrast, when the touch display device is determined to be in a vertical orientation, that is, when the touch display device is likely to be used with a dominant right-finger, the adjustment module may be configured to adjust the interface based on the touch map of the dominant right-finger, or the most commonly selected finger. As further elaborated with reference to
While the above are provided as nonlimiting example interface adjustments that can be used to tailor an interface to a particular touch profile, it is to be understood that virtually all other customizations are within the spirit of this disclosure. As another example, completely different versions of various controls may be chosen based on a touch profile. For example, five separate buttons representing five separate options may be displayed for a user with a small finger, whereas a single selection wheel with five options may be displayed for a user with a large finger. In such an example, both users have access to the same options, although the user with the smaller finger, who can more accurately press smaller buttons, has more direct access, thus enhancing that user's experience. At the same time, the user with the larger finger has a larger control to interact with, thus decreasing mistypes and accidental selections, thus enhancing that user's experience.
In the depicted example, the user finger 204 may have been mapped, such as during a previous calibration step, and a corresponding touch map may have been generated. Furthermore, interaction characteristics specific to the user finger 204 may have been previously determined. For example, it may have been determined that the user finger 204 generates a touch map with a downward and leftward offset. Based on a touch history of the user finger 204, it may also be known that when interacting with interface 406, the user finger 204 tends to inadvertently touch interface element W 412 when intending to touch adjacent interface element E 414. Consequently, when interface 406 displays a keyboard, the user tends to mistype a W when intending to type an E. To reduce such mistyping errors, the settings of the input-receiving parameters of the interface elements may be adjusted, in accordance with the user's touch map and/or the user's touch history. In some examples, the input receiving parameters may include a hit-target size of the interface elements. In some examples, the input receiving parameters may include a hit-target offset of the interface elements.
In the depicted example, when an adjustment has been performed, based on the known downward and leftward offset of the touch map, and/or based on the touch history of the user, the size of hit-target 416 for interface element E 414 may be increased while the size of hit-target 416 for adjacent interface element W 412 may be decreased. Additionally, the hit-target 416 for the interface elements 414 and 412 may be shifted left and low, such that the hit-target for interface element E 414 may overlap a portion of the display of interface element W 412. The adjustments enable the touch display device to account for variances in the user finger's interaction with the different interface elements. In contrast, when unadjusted, the hit-target 416 for interface element W 412 and interface element Q 414 may be of the same size and without an offset, such that the user may continue to mistype W when intending to type an E. By adjusting settings for the hit-target size, offset, and other related input-receiving parameters of the interface elements based on the user's touch map, the touch display device can preempt such typing errors.
In the depicted example, as in
In the depicted scenario, a word-processing application may be in use on the touch display device 400 and interface 406 may be displaying a keyboard. Herein, the most recent touch interaction between user finger 204 and interface 406 was for typing the letter V. Based on predictive abilities of the touch display device 400, and based on the context of the word typed so far (that is, MOV), it may be predicted that the following letter is more likely to be an interface element 1512 than the neighboring interface element O 514. With this predictive information, the settings of the input-receiving parameters of the interface elements may be adjusted, in accordance with the user's touch map. Based on the known rightward and downward offset of the touch map, and further based on the predicted information, the size of hit-target 516 for interface element 1512 may be increased while the size of hit-target 516 for adjacent interface element O 514 may be decreased. Additionally, the hit-target 516 for the interface elements may be offset right and low, such that the hit-target for interface element 1512 may overlap a portion of the display of interface element O 514. By adjusting settings for the hit-target size, offset, and other related input-receiving parameters of the interface elements based on the user's touch map and based on predictive abilities, the touch display device can preempt typing errors.
It is to be understood that the configurations and/or approaches described herein are exemplary in nature, and that these specific embodiments or examples are not to be considered in a limiting sense, because numerous variations are possible. The specific routines or methods described herein may represent one or more of any number of processing strategies. As such, various acts illustrated may be performed in the sequence illustrated, in other sequences, in parallel, or in some cases omitted. Likewise, the order of the above-described processes may be changed.
The subject matter of the present disclosure includes all novel and nonobvious combinations and subcombinations of the various processes, systems and configurations, and other features, functions, acts, and/or properties disclosed herein, as well as any and all equivalents thereof.
