Mobile apps on multi-screen computing devices

Abstract

Examples relate to operating a user interface of a dual-screen computing device. One example provides a computing device including a first portion and a second portion, the first portion including a first display and a first touch sensor, the second portion including a second display and a second touch sensor, the second portion being connected to the first portion via a hinge, the hinge defining a seam between the first display and the second display. The computing device is configured to receive a touch input at the first display to move an application currently displayed on the first display but not on the second display to the second display, detect the touch input to release the application within a predetermined area, and expand the application across the first display and the second display.

Description

Background Art

[0001] Some mobile electronic devices, such as smartphones and tablets, have a monolithic handheld form factor in which a display occupies substantially the entire front face of the device. Other devices, such as laptops, include hinges that connect the display to other hardware, such as a keyboard and cursor controller (e.g., trackpad). Summary of the invention

[0002] Examples of user interfaces related to operating a multi-screen computing device are disclosed. One example provides a computing device including a first portion and a second portion, the first portion including a first display and a first touch sensor, the second portion including a second display and a second touch sensor, the second portion being connected to the first portion via a hinge, the hinge defining a seam between the first display and the second display. The computing device is configured to receive a touch input at the first display to move an application currently displayed on the first display but not on the second display to the second display, detect the touch input to release the application within a predetermined area, expand the application across the first display and the second display so that a portion of the application content is hidden behind the seam, receive a touch input to move the expanded application, and move the expanded application in the direction of the touch input to reveal at least a portion of the application content hidden behind the seam.

[0003] Another example provides a computing device including a first portion including a first display and a first touch sensor, a second portion including a second display and a second touch sensor, a logic device, and a storage device storing instructions executable by a logic machine, the first portion including a first display and a first touch sensor, the second portion connected to the first portion via a hinge, the hinge defining a seam between the first display and the second display. The instructions are executable to receive a touch input at the first display to move an application from the first display to the second display, move the application to the second display when the touch input releases the application within a first predefined area, and expand the application by displaying the application across the first display and the second display when the touch input releases the application within the second predefined area.

[0004] Another example provides a method implemented on a computing device, the computing device including a first portion and a second portion, the first portion including a first display and a first touch sensor, the second portion including a second display and a second touch sensor, the second portion being connected to the first portion via a hinge. The method includes displaying a first application on the first display, displaying a second application on the second display, receiving a touch input at the first display to move the first application toward the second display, detecting that the touch input releases the application within a predetermined area, and overlaying the first application on top of the second application based at least on the touch input releasing the application within the predetermined area.

[0005] This disclosure is provided to introduce in simplified form a selection of concepts that are also described below in the detailed description. This disclosure 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 of the disadvantages mentioned in any part of this disclosure. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0006] Figure 1 An example multi-screen computing device is shown.

[0007] Figure 2-5 Example gestures for a dual-screen computing device are shown.

[0008] Fig. 6A and 6B An example expansion of an application and an example revealing of content of the expanded application that was hidden by the hinge are shown.

[0009] Figure 7-9 An example scaling of an application in response to user touch input dragging the application is shown.

[0010] Fig.10 A plot of an example vertical movement of an application as a function of touch position in the Y direction is shown.

[0011] Fig.11 A plot of example application scaling as a function of touch position in the Y direction is shown.

[0012] Fig.12 and 13 An example prompt image displayed to move an application from one display to another based on a touch input is shown.

[0013] Figure 14-17 Example prompt images displayed based on a touch input crossing various threshold distances are shown.

[0014] Fig.18 An example prompt image displayed in response to a touch input for an overlay application is shown.

[0015] Fig.19 An example prompt image displayed in response to a touch input for switching applications is shown.

[0016] Fig. 20 An example user interface is shown when an application is overlaid and then canceled within a threshold time.

[0017] Fig.21 An example user interface is shown depicting launching a new task from a link in an application while another application is open on another display.

[0018] Fig. 22 An example user interface is shown depicting expanding an application over another application and then collapsing the application to thereby restore the application below the expanded application.

[0019] Fig.23 Example user interfaces are shown depicting expanding an application while another application is open on another display and collapsing the expanded application to either display, where the swap occurs with the expanded application collapsed to the other display.

[0020] Fig.24 Example user interfaces are shown depicting expanding an application while two other applications are overlaid on another display and collapsing the expanded application to either display, where the swap occurs with the expanded application collapsed to the other display.

[0021] Fig.25 An example user interface is shown depicting expanding and collapsing one application while a second application is overlaid behind the application and a third application is open on another screen.

[0022] Fig.26 An example user interface is shown depicting expanding and collapsing one application when a second application is overlaid behind the application and two other applications are overlaid on another screen.

[0023] Fig. 27 An example method of operating a dual-screen computing device is shown.

[0024] Figures 28A-28E Other example methods of operating a dual-screen computing device are shown.

[0025] Figures 29A-29B An example user interface depicting interaction with an application folder is shown, where pinned applications are automatically moved based on the interaction with the application folder.

[0026] Fig.30 Another example method of operating a dual-screen computing device is shown.

[0027] Fig.31 A block diagram of an example computing system is shown. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0028] The disclosed examples relate to a computing device having a multi-screen configuration. Figure 1An example multi-screen computing device is shown in the form of a dual-screen computing device 100. The dual-screen computing device 100 includes a first portion 102 and a second portion 104 including a first display 106 and a second display 108, respectively. A hinge 110 disposed between the first and second portions 102 and 104 allows for adjustment of a relative posture between the portions and their displays. The dual-screen computing device 100 may be configured to determine a relative posture between the first and second portions 102 and 104 (e.g., via motion sensor data from one or more motion sensors in each portion) and adjust functionality of the computing device based on the relative posture.

[0029] Each of the first display 106 and the second display 108 may be a touch-sensitive display having a touch sensor. The touch sensor(s) may be configured to sense multiple sources of touch input (such as a user's finger and a stylus manipulated by the user) and may sense multiple concurrent touches. The dual-screen computing device 100 may take any suitable form, including but not limited to various mobile devices (e.g., foldable smartphones, tablets, or laptop computers).

[0030] The first portion 102 includes a first three-dimensional posture sensor system 114 configured to provide an output indicating a three-dimensional posture of the first portion 102, and the second portion 104 includes a second three-dimensional posture sensor system 116 configured to provide an output indicating a three-dimensional posture of the second portion 104. In some examples, the first three-dimensional posture sensor system 114 and the second three-dimensional posture sensor system 116 each include an accelerometer and a gyroscope and an optional magnetometer. The outputs generated by the first three-dimensional posture sensor system 114 and the second three-dimensional posture sensor system 116 can be used to determine the three-dimensional posture of the first and second portions 102 and 104, respectively. In other examples, any other suitable one or more sensors (such as optical or mechanical encoders incorporated into the hinge) can be used to sense the relative orientation of the display.

[0031] Figure 2-5 Various example display gestures for dual-screen computing device 100 are shown. More specifically, Figure 2 A single portrait posture is shown (where either display 106 or 108 may be facing the user), Figure 3 The dual vertical screen posture is shown. Figure 4 A single landscape posture is shown (where either display 106 or 108 may be facing the user), and Figure 5 The dual-screen landscape posture is shown. Depending on the posture of the dual-screen computing device 100, the user interface of the dual-screen computing device 100 may be configured to operate in certain ways and / or respond differently to touch inputs. Figure 2 and Figure 4In the embodiment of the present invention, the second portion 104 can be folded behind the first portion 102 via the hinge 110, and vice versa. From the perspective of a user of the dual-screen computing device 100, the second display 108 may be imperceptible when the second display is folded behind the first portion. As a result, the dual-screen computing device 100 may fully render graphical content previously displayed across both the first display 106 and the second display 108 onto the first display 106, may stop displaying images on the second display 108, and / or may also stop receiving touch input on the second display 108. Various examples of operating a user interface based on a gesture of a computing device and responding to touch input are further described below.

[0032] In some examples, touch input may be applied across both a first display and a second display of a dual-screen computing device. Fig. 6A and 6B An example user interface is shown when an application 600 is expanded across the first display 106 and the second display 108 of the first portion 102 and the second portion 104 of the dual-screen computing device 100. First, the user interface at 602 shows the application 600 opened on the second display 108 of the second portion 104, while the first display 106 on the first portion 102 is not occupied by any application. At 604, the user interface shows that the touch input 606 has dragged the application 600 from the second display 604 to the first display 602. The touch input 606 can originate at a location along the application navigation bar 608 displayed at the bottom of the application 600. The application navigation bar 608 can be configured to receive user input related to moving, releasing, or otherwise manipulating the application 600. The touch input 606 can release the application 600 when the application 600 is in a predetermined area (e.g., within a threshold distance from the seam 610 between the two displays (as defined by the hinge 110 connecting the two device portions)). Example predetermined area reference for triggering certain user interface actions Figure 12-17 Discuss in more detail.

[0033] The user interface at 612 shows application 600 expanded across the two displays in response to the touch input releasing application 600. A mask may be applied to the rendering of the application in a location corresponding to seam 610 as the application is expanded. This mask may help the display of the expanded application (and application windows moved across the seam) appear more naturally than if the full image were split between the two displays. However, this mask also causes a small area of ​​the displayed application to be unviewable. Thus, the user may desire to reveal content obscured by the seam. Figure 6BAn example interaction is shown at 614 and 616, where a user moves application 600 (e.g., by touching and dragging) to reveal content hidden by seam 610. Any suitable touch input may trigger the shifting of the application to reveal content behind seam 610. As an example, the touch input may be swiping left or right from the seam, from a seam corner, etc., in dual portrait mode, touching and dragging, or performing a multi-finger gesture. The same touch input may apply except in the upward or downward direction from the seam in dual landscape mode. At 614, the user interface shows that the touch input moves the application to the left, and at 616 the user interface shows that the touch input moves the application to the right. The expanded application may thus move in the direction of the touch input to reveal at least a portion of the application content hidden behind the seam. In either example, the user may then move the application back to the original expanded mode shown in 612, such as by tapping the revealed arrow user interface control 618 or 620 (shown at 614 and 616) or by dragging back toward the seam and releasing the application. In other examples, this mask may not be applied, and the application may instead be divided into two parts that together constitute the entire image. In other examples, this seam between multiple displays may not exist, or the seam may also be configured to display content (e.g., via a flexible display above a hinge).

[0034] In some examples, touch input may move an application while scaling the application. Figure 7-9 An example of a displayed application dragging a zoom of the application in response to a user touch input is shown. As shown, the origin of the zoom of the application can be dynamically set by the horizontal touch position. For example, Figure 7 A touch input 700 is shown starting at the lower right corner of the application. Figure 8 A touch input 800 is shown starting at the bottom middle of the application, and Fig. 9 A touch input 900 starting at the lower left corner of an application is shown. In these examples, the zoom is reduced based on the vertical movement distance from the bottom of the display, and the origin of the movement is based on the initial touch position of the touch input. The dynamic positioning of the origin of the zoom can help create the effect that the application follows the user's finger or stylus. Automatic zooming that occurs with the movement of the application can help better indicate to the user that the application is currently being moved while keeping the content of the application visible. In addition, once released, the expansion of the application back to its original size can also help better indicate to the user that the application is no longer moved by user input. Automatic zooming when moving an application can further help provide a more seamless transition of the application to a recent application list or a task switcher for switching between applications (as an example). For example, a preview of the recent application list can be triggered when the gesture speed for moving the application falls within a threshold speed close to zero.

[0035] In some examples, in portrait posture, the application can be moved in response to horizontal movement and scaled in response to vertical movement, and in landscape posture, the application can be moved in response to vertical movement and scaled in response to horizontal movement. In addition, the ratio of the movement of the touch input to the movement of the application on the user interface can vary depending on the touch location. Fig.10 A plot of example vertical movement of an application on a display as a function of touch position in the Y direction when the display device is in a portrait posture is shown. In this example, from the Y position of pixel 720 to pixel 400, the position of the application follows the user's touch at a 1:1 ratio. Next, from the touch Y position of pixels 400 to 100, the change in application Y position compared to the change in touch position changes from pixels 400 to 200 at a ratio of less than 1:1. From the touch Y position of pixels 100 to 0, the application Y position changes linearly with respect to the touch position at an even smaller ratio. In other examples, any other suitable mapping of touch movement to application movement may be used.

[0036] Likewise, application zoom can vary based on touch location. Fig.11 A plot of example application scaling as a function of touch position in the Y direction is shown. From a touch Y position of pixels 720 to 400, the application may scale linearly from 100% to 30% scale at a first rate; from a touch Y position of pixels 400 to 300, the application may scale linearly, but at a smaller rate, from 30% to 20% scale; and from a touch Y position less than pixels 300, the scale of the application may remain at 20%, thereby not zooming out further. In the depicted example, movement of the application in the horizontal direction while in portrait mode may follow the user's touch at a 1:1 ratio at all X positions, and horizontal movement may not result in application scaling (as an example). Application movement in landscape mode may also display movement rate and / or scaling adjustments.

[0037] In both the dual portrait and dual landscape postures, movement of applications from one display to the other may be accompanied by cue images displayed to indicate how the application may move or behave based on touch input. Fig.12 and 13 Example hint images 1200 and 1300 that may be displayed when moving an application in dual portrait and dual landscape postures are shown, respectively. The example hint images shown indicate that if the touch input currently dragging the application is released at the current location, the application will be located or moved to the display on which the hint image is displayed.

[0038] Figure 14-17 An example prompt image displayed based on a touch input moving an application within an example threshold distance is shown. In these figures, the transition zone 14 occupies a portion of the first display and a portion of the second display. Fig.14An example is shown in which a touch input drags an application from the second display to the first display. In this figure, a first portion 144 of the application, as defined from the left edge of the application to the example line A, has not yet passed the first boundary 145 of the transition zone 14, and a hint image has not yet been displayed, indicating that if the touch input releases the application at this location, the application will be displayed again at the original location without any movement.

[0039] Fig.15 The application is shown to have been moved far enough that a first portion 144 of the application has passed a first boundary 145 of the transition zone 14. In response, a prompt image is displayed on the first display indicating that the application will be moved to the first display upon release. Fig.16 The application is shown to have been moved so that a larger second portion 146 of the application, as defined from the left edge of the application to example line B, passes through the first boundary 145 of the transition zone 14, and in response a prompt image is displayed across the two displays indicating that the application will expand across the two displays upon release. Fig.17 The application is shown to have been moved so that the larger second portion 146 of the application passes the second boundary 147 of the transition zone 14, and in response a prompt image is displayed on the first display indicating that the application will be moved to the first display upon release. Thus, there may be at least one predetermined area to which the application may be moved to trigger the same action.

[0040] Fig.18 An example prompt image displayed in response to a touch input moving an application to a display currently occupied by another application is shown. In this example, the touch input moves the application from the second display to the first display, but the first display is already occupied by another application. Fig.15 and Fig.17 When the dragged application is released (the distance shown) or dragged to a predetermined area, the other application on the left may be slightly reduced and grayed out as a prompt image, indicating that the dragged application will be superimposed on the other application when released and may cause the other application to close in some examples.

[0041] Fig.19An example prompt image displayed in response to a touch input for swapping applications is shown. Here, the application has been dragged so that the first portion 144 of the application has passed the example swap threshold line marked as line C. Alternatively, the application can be dragged so that the far edge 1902 of the application passes through the first boundary 145 into the transition zone 14. In response to either situation, a prompt image is displayed that shows the second application on the left at a smaller scale and shows the second application as a grayed image on the second display, indicating that the application on the right will be swapped with the application on the left upon release. It will be understood that in some examples, the prompt image may not be displayed, but the same action may be applied upon release within the predetermined area, regardless of whether the prompt image is displayed. In addition, other suitable prompt images may be used in other examples.

[0042] As described above, in some examples, when a first application is moved from a first display to a second display already occupied by a second application, the first application is superimposed on the second application. In some such examples, the second application can remain indefinitely behind the first application in a suspended state until the first application is moved away or dismissed. In other such examples, the second application can be automatically dismissed. In other examples, the second application can remain superimposed behind the first application for a predetermined threshold amount of time, after which the second application can be dismissed and then accessible from the recent application list. Within the threshold amount of time, the user can undo the overlay to reveal and resume the second application again. Fig. 20 An example user interface is shown when an application is superimposed and then unsuperimposed within a threshold time. At 2002, application 1 is on the left display, and application 2 is on the right display. At 2004, a touch input moves application 2 to the left display onto application 1, and application 1 is shown as smaller and transparent as an example prompt image indicating the superposition and possible application release. At 2006, application 2 has been superimposed on application 1. However, before the threshold amount of time has passed, the touch input moves application 2 back to the right display, as shown in 2008, thereby revealing application 1 before application 1 is released. After the threshold amount of time, the released application can be restored again from, for example, a recent application list. Any suitable threshold time can be used. In some examples, the threshold time can be between five seconds and twenty seconds, and in a more specific example can be ten seconds. In addition, in some examples, an application that has become superimposed under another application can instead be automatically transferred to a recent application list (immediately or after a predetermined threshold time) for user retrieval.

[0043] In some examples, the user can trigger the launch of a new application from a currently open application or trigger a new instance of the same application. When in dual portrait or dual landscape mode, a new task can be automatically launched from the first application for display on the display opposite to the first application if the display is not occupied.

[0044] In some cases, a user may attempt to launch a new task from a currently open application while the relative display is already occupied. Fig.21 An example user interface is shown depicting a new task of launching a link from an application when another application is open on another display. At 2102, the left display is occupied by application 1 containing a link, and the right display is occupied by application 2. At 2104, the user clicks on the link, which launches a new application, namely application 3. Because the adjacent display is occupied, the new application 3 is opened on the same display as application 1, superimposed on application 1 and suspending application 1, as shown in 2106. When application 3 is launched and expanded to cover the left display, application 1 can be displayed as if it is retreating and / or shrinking. At 2108, application 3 has been superimposed on application 1. In this case, the superposition may not result in the automatic dismissal of application 1. Application 1 can be restored, for example, by the following: the user retrieves it from the recent application list (as described above) or the user touches the input to dismiss or move application 3 to the adjacent display.

[0045] Similarly, moving and expanding applications may behave differently depending on whether the display(s) are occupied. Figure 22-26 Various examples of expanding, overlaying, swapping, and dismissing applications in response to the movement of one application when one or more displays are already occupied by one or more other applications are shown. Fig. 22 An example user interface is shown depicting expanding an application above another application and then collapsing the expanded application to thereby restore the application below the expanded application. At 2202, application 1 is displayed on a first display, and application 2 is displayed on a second display. At 2204, a user touch input moves application 1 toward the seam, and releases to expand application 1 across the two displays, overlaying application 1 on top of application 2 on the second display, as shown in 2206. At 2208, a user touch input collapses application 1 and moves application 1 back to the first display. At 2210, application 2 is revealed and restored.

[0046] Fig.23Expanding and contracting applications while another application is open on another display is shown, and different results resulting from contracting application 1 to different screens are also shown. At 2302, application 1 is displayed on a first display, and application 2 is displayed on a second display. At 2304, application 1 is shown expanded across the two displays, such as after a touch input drags application 1 and releases application 1 near a seam, thereby superimposing at least a portion of application 1 on top of application 2 on the second display. The user can contract application 1 back to the first display, thereby restoring application 2 on the second display, as shown in 2306. Alternatively, the user can contract application 1 to the second display. Application 1 can be automatically swapped with application 2 so that application 2 is displayed on the first display, as shown in 2308, rather than superimposing application 1 on top of application 2. In other examples, the swap can be triggered by moving the expanded application to a "swap threshold area" within the outer edge of the display when the expanded application is contracted, such as at Fig.19 If the shrunk application is released outside the swap threshold region, this can result in a permanent overlay.

[0047] Fig.24 The expansion and contraction of applications is shown when two other applications are superimposed on another display. At 2402, application 1 is displayed on a first display, and application 2 is displayed on a second display while being superimposed on application 3. At 2404, a user touch input moves the application toward the seam, and upon release, application 1 is expanded across the two displays, superimposed on top of application 2 and application 3 on the second display, as shown in 2406. At 2408, the user input contracts the expanded application 1, but the result is different depending on which side application 1 is contracted to. At 2410, application 1 is shown as contracted to the first display, thereby restoring the original arrangement. However, as shown in 2412, when the expanded application is contracted to the second display where the superimposed applications were originally located, the superimposed application swaps positions with the expanded application. As described above, in other examples, the exchange can be triggered when the expanded application is contracted to a "swap threshold area" within the outer edge of the display, and the superposition can occur when the expanded application is released outside the swap threshold area.

[0048] Fig.25The expansion and contraction of an application is shown while a second application is superimposed behind an application and a third application is open on another display. At 2502, application 1 is superimposed on top of application 2 on a first display, and application 3 is displayed on a second display. At 2504, a user touch input moves application 1 toward the seam. Application 1 is thereby expanded across the two displays, superimposed on top of application 2 on the first display and application 3 on the second display, as shown in 2506. When the expanded application is contracted at 2508, the application may be superimposed on top of the second application or the third application, depending on which side the application is contracted to. At 2510, application 1 is contracted to the first display, thereby restoring application 3 on the second display. At 2512, application 1 is contracted to the second display, thereby revealing application 2 on the first display, while application 1 is superimposed on top of application 3 on the second display.

[0049] Fig.26 The expansion and contraction of the application when the second application is superimposed behind the application and two other applications are superimposed on another display is shown. At 2602, application 1 is superimposed on top of application 2 on the first display, and application 3 is superimposed on top of application 4 on the second display. At 2604, the user touch input moves application 1 toward the seam. When application 1 is expanded, as shown in 2606, application 1 remains superimposed on top of application 2 on the left display, and is also superimposed on applications 3 and 4 on the right display. At 2608, the user touch input then contracts application 1. When the user retracts application 1 to the left display, at 2610, application 1 is superimposed back on top of application 2 on the left display, while application 3 and application 4 remain superimposed on the right display. In contrast, when the user contracts application 1 on the right display, as shown in 2612, application 1 is superimposed on top of application 3, thereby releasing application 4. This can occur, for example, when the setting stipulates that only two applications can be superimposed on the display at any time (rather than when expanded). In other examples, each display can superimpose more than two applications at a time.

[0050] Fig. 27An example method 2700 of operating a dual-screen computing device is shown. Method 2700 includes, at 2702, displaying a first application on a first display of the dual-screen computing device, and at 2704, displaying a second application on a second display of the dual-screen computing device. Method 2700 further includes, at 2706, receiving a touch input to open a third application at the first display while the first application is displayed on the first display, such as from a link within the first application. At 2708, method 2700 includes displaying the third application as superimposed on the first application. At 2710, method 2700 includes receiving a touch input to close the third application, and in response, closing the third application and displaying the first application on the first display. The computing device may open a new application from currently running applications based on whether any application is already open on either the first display or the second display.

[0051] Figures 28A-28E Another example method 2800 of operating a dual-screen computing device is shown, and more specifically various methods of displaying an application based on the application being moved to different predetermined areas of the display. Method 2800 includes receiving, at 2802, a touch input at a first display to drag a first application from the first display to a second display. In some examples, this may include dragging an application from a first display to a second display in an application navigation bar (e.g., displayed at a bottom, side, or other suitable location on the display, such as Fig. 6A and Figure 6B At 2804, when the first application is dragged, the size of the first application can be scaled based at least in part on the direction of movement of the touch input. At 2806, method 2800 includes displaying a prompt indicating where the application will move to based at least in part on the touch input to drag the first application into a predetermined area. For example, a prompt image indicating that the first application will be expanded, moved, swapped, or superimposed may be displayed, the prompt image indicating the first application a result of dragging the first application based on the touch input if the touch input is completed.

[0052] From 2802, method 2800 may continue to Fig.28A 2808 or continue to Fig.28C , 28D or 28E, these figures show different results depending on where the first application is released.

[0053] For example, method 2800 may include, at 2808, detecting that a touch input releases a first application within a first predetermined area. This may include, at 2810, detecting that a touch input releases the first application within a threshold distance of a device seam in a hinge area of ​​the computing device. In other examples, this seam may not exist. At 2812, method 2800 includes unfolding the application across the first display and the second display so that a portion of the application content is hidden behind the seam. The unfolding may include, at 2824, applying a mask to the rendering of the first application in a position corresponding to the seam between the first display and the second display. In other examples, the image of the first application may be divided so that the complete image is split between the two displays.

[0054] Additionally, expanding may include, at 2816, overlaying a portion of the expanded first application over a second application on the second display, wherein the second application is open on the second display.

[0055] continue Fig.28B , method 2800 further includes receiving a touch input to move the expanded first application at 2818. Method 2800 also includes, at 2820, moving the expanded application in the direction of the touch input to reveal at least a portion of the application content hidden behind the seam. In addition, method 2800 includes receiving a touch input to move and shrink the expanded application to either of the first display and the second display at 2822, and displaying the first application on one of the first display and the second display based on the touch input. For example, a drag-and-drop touch input or a fling gesture may shrink the first application to the first display, and in response the first application may be moved to the first display. In the case where the first application is superimposed on the second application, moving the first application may reveal the second application, as shown in 2824. As another example, the touch input may shrink the first application to the second display so that the first application remains superimposed on the second application, as shown in 2826, thereby in some examples may cause the closing of the second application, for example, immediately or after a threshold amount of time. As yet another example, a touch input may shrink the first application onto the second display so that the first application swaps positions with the second application rather than being overlaid on top of the second application, as shown at 2828 .

[0056] In the case where the touch input is released in an area different from the first predefined area, a result different from expansion may occur. Fig.28CShown at 2736, it is detected that the touch input releases the first application within the second predefined area. In response, as shown in 2832, the first application is moved to the second display instead of being spread across the two displays. This action can also be due to a swipe gesture, in which the touch input moves from one of the first and second displays to the other of the first and second displays at a speed greater than a threshold speed and / or an acceleration greater than a threshold acceleration, as also shown in 2830. Moving the first application to the second display may include at 2834, superimposing the first application on the second application on the second display. In some examples, the computing device may close the second application after the first application is superimposed on the second application for a threshold amount of time, as shown in 2836. This may allow the user to move the superimposed first application back to the first display to reveal the second application on the second display before the second application is closed. Thus, method 2800 further includes at 2838, receiving a touch input that moves the first application back to the first display, and in response, displaying the first application on the first display. In the case where the first application is superimposed on the second application and moves within a threshold amount of time, this may also include displaying the second application on the second display.

[0057] In another example response to the touch input received at 2802, Fig.28D As shown in 2842, it is detected that the touch input releases the first application within the third predefined area and exchanges the first application on the first display with the second application on the second display. As another example response to the touch gesture of 2802, Fig.28E Shown at 2842, the touch input is detected to release the first application in the fourth predefined area, and the first application is closed in response. The touch input can drag and drop the first application in any other suitable predetermined area to trigger other corresponding actions, such as moving the application to a recent application list, etc.

[0058] Figures 29A-29BAn example user interface depicting interaction with application folders in dual portrait mode of a dual screen computing device 100 is shown. At 2902, the user interface shows a fixed application bar 2904 on the first display 106 of the first portion 102 and a fixed application bar 2906 on the second display 108 of the second portion 104. The user interface also shows at 2902 a touch input 2908 tapping an application folder 2910 on the first display 106. At 2912, the application folder 2910 is opened on the first display 106. The opened application folder 2910 may be at least partially transparent so that the content behind it is still visible. In addition, the fixed application on the fixed application bar 2904 on the first display 106 is shifted to the fixed application bar 2906 on the second display 108. In some examples, the shift may be animated so that the user sees the transition of the fixed application to the other display. It will be understood that the shift of the fixed application may occur when an application or system component (e.g., a folder) occupies either screen in dual display mode. At 2914, a touch input 2916 performed on the second display 108 drags from left to right on the second display 108, which moves the items behind the application folder 2910 displayed on the first display 106 to the second display 108. At any time, the user can close the folder, for example, by tapping the "X" icon shown in the application folder 2910.

[0059] continue Fig.29B , at 2918, the application folder 2910 is opened on the second display 108, such as after a touch input to move the application folder from the first display 106 to the second display 108, or after a touch input has closed the application folder 2910 on the first display 106 and reopened the application folder 2910 on the second display 108. The pinned application previously on the pinned application bar 2906 of the second display 108 is shifted to the pinned application bar 2904 on the first display 106. Similarly, a touch input 2920 may be performed from right to left to shift the content behind the application folder 2910 on the second display 108 to the first display 106, as similarly shown at 2914. At 2924, when the application folder 2910 is open, a touch input 2926 may move an application 2928 that is not currently in the application folder 2910 into the folder 2910. It will be appreciated that the pinned application may also be shifted in response to opening an application on one display, and is not limited to the opening of an application folder. This behavior allows pinned applications to remain visible to the user.

[0060] In some examples, when no application or system component (e.g., folder) is open on the first display 106 or the second display 108, the user can also shift the fixed application that was on the fixed application bar 2904 on the first display 106 to the fixed application bar 2906 on the second display 108 by a rightward sliding / swiping gesture within the threshold area of ​​the fixed application bar 2904 or the fixed application bar 2906. Similarly, the user can perform a leftward sliding / swiping gesture on the fixed application bar 2906 or the fixed application bar 2904 to shift the fixed application that was previously on the fixed application bar 2906 on the second display 108 to the fixed application bar 2904 on the first display 106. This gives the user control over which fixed application is launched on the preferred display. It will be understood that the above-mentioned example windowing gestures, including any other above-mentioned ones, also apply to the dual horizontal screen gesture and the gesture directions described are relative.

[0061] Fig.30 An example method 3000 for operating a dual-screen computing device is shown. Method 3000 includes, at 3002, displaying one or more applications in a fixed application bar on each of a first display and a second display. Method 3000 further includes, at 3004, receiving a touch input to open an application or folder on one of the first display and the second display. In response, method 3000 includes, at 3006, displaying the open application or folder on one of the first display and the second display, and shifting the fixed application on one of the first display and the second display to the other of the first display and the second display. For example, if the touch input opens an application on the first display, the fixed application in the fixed application bar on the first display may be shifted to the fixed application bar of the second display. Similarly, if the touch input opens an application on the second display, the fixed application in the fixed application bar on the second display may be shifted to the fixed application bar of the first display. It will be understood that this may also be applicable when opening an application folder, as described with reference to FIG. Figures 29A-29B Described.

[0062] It will be appreciated that the various user interface examples described herein may be applicable to any suitable multi-display system, including display systems other than mobile phones, such as multi-monitor display systems for desktop computers, surface-mounted multi-displays, virtual and / or augmented reality display systems, heads-up displays, projection display systems, etc. Furthermore, while described above in the context of touch input, it will be appreciated that any of the above touch inputs and gestures may also be input via a suitable input device (e.g., a mouse controlling a cursor).

[0063] In some embodiments, the methods and processes described herein may be bound to a computing system of one or more computing devices. Specifically, such methods and processes may be implemented as computer applications or services, application programming interfaces (APIs), libraries, and / or other computer program products.

[0064] Fig.31 A non-limiting embodiment of a computing system 3100 that can perform one or more of the above methods and processes is schematically shown. The computing system 3100 is shown in simplified form. The computing system 3100 may include the above and in Figure 1 The dual-screen computing device 100 illustrated in FIG. The computing system 3100 may take the form of one or more personal computers, server computers, tablet computers, home entertainment computers, network computing devices, gaming devices, mobile computing devices, mobile communication devices (e.g., smart phones), and / or other computing devices, as well as wearable computing devices such as smart watches and head-mounted augmented reality devices.

[0065] The computing system 3100 includes a logic device 3102 and a storage device 3104. The computing system 3100 may optionally include a display subsystem 3106, an input subsystem 3108, a communication subsystem 3110, and / or Fig.31 Other components not shown.

[0066] Logic device 3102 includes one or more physical devices configured to execute instructions. For example, logic device 3102 can be configured to execute instructions that are part of one or more applications, programs, routines, libraries, objects, components, data structures, or other logical constructs. Such instructions can be implemented to perform tasks, implement data types, transform the state of one or more components, achieve technical effects, or otherwise obtain desired results.

[0067] The logic device 3102 may include one or more physical processors (hardware) configured to execute software instructions. Additionally or alternatively, the logic device 3102 may include one or more hardware logic circuits or firmware devices configured to execute hardware-implemented logic or firmware instructions. The processor of the logic device 3102 may be single-core or multi-core, and the instructions executed thereon may be configured for serial, parallel and / or distributed processing. The individual components of the logic device 3102 may be optionally distributed between two or more separate devices, which may be located remotely and / or configured for collaborative processing. Various aspects of the logic device 3102 may be virtualized and executed by a remotely accessible networked computing device configured in a cloud computing configuration. It will be understood that in such a situation, these virtualization aspects are run on different physical logical processors of various different machines.

[0068] The storage device 3104 may be a non-volatile storage device. The non-volatile storage device includes one or more physical devices configured to hold instructions executable by the logic device 3102 to implement the methods and processes described herein. When implementing such methods and processes, the state of the non-volatile storage device may be transformed—for example, to hold different data.

[0069] Non-volatile storage devices may include removable and / or built-in devices. Non-volatile storage devices may include optical storage (e.g., CD, DVD, HD-DVD, Blu-ray disc, etc.), semiconductor storage (e.g., ROM, EPROM, EEPROM, flash memory, etc.), and / or magnetic storage (e.g., hard disk drive, floppy disk drive, tape drive, MRAM, etc.) or other mass storage device technologies. Non-volatile storage devices may include non-volatile, dynamic, static, read / write, read-only, sequential access, location addressable, file addressable, and / or content addressable devices. It will be appreciated that the non-volatile storage device is configured to save instructions even when power to the non-volatile storage device is cut off.

[0070] In other examples, the storage device 3104 may include volatile memory, which may include a physical device that includes random access memory. Volatile memory is typically used by the logic device 3102 to temporarily store information during the processing of software instructions. It will be appreciated that when power to the volatile memory is cut off, the volatile memory typically does not continue to store instructions.

[0071] Aspects of the logic device 3102 and / or the storage device 3104 may be integrated together into one or more hardware logic components. Such hardware logic components may include, for example, field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), program and application specific integrated circuits (PASIC / ASIC), program and application specific standard products (PSSP / ASSP), systems on chips (SOCs), and complex programmable logic devices (CPLDs).

[0072] When including a display subsystem 3106, the display subsystem 3106 can be used to present a visual representation of the data held by the storage device 3104. The visual representation can take the form of a graphical user interface (GUI). Since the methods and processes described herein change the data held by the non-volatile storage device, and thus transform the state of the non-volatile storage device, the state of the display subsystem 3106 can also be transformed to visually represent the changes in the underlying data. The display subsystem 3106 can include one or more display devices utilizing substantially any type of technology. Such display devices can be combined with the logic device 3102, volatile memory, and / or non-volatile storage device in a shared housing, or such display devices can be peripheral display devices.

[0073] When an input subsystem 3108 is included, the input subsystem 3108 may include or interface with one or more user input devices such as a keyboard, mouse, touch screen, or game controller. In some embodiments, the input subsystem may include selected natural user input (NUI) components or interface with the above-mentioned natural user input (NUI) components. Such components can be integrated or peripheral, and the transduction and / or processing of input actions can be handled on or off the board. Example NUI components may include microphones for language and / or speech recognition; infrared, color, stereoscopic display and / or depth cameras for machine vision and / or gesture recognition; head trackers, eye trackers, accelerometers and / or gyroscopes for motion detection and / or intent recognition; and electric field sensing components for evaluating brain activity; and / or any other suitable sensors.

[0074] When including the communication subsystem 3110, the communication subsystem 3110 can be configured to communicatively couple the various computing devices described herein to each other and to communicatively couple to other devices. The communication subsystem 3110 may include wired and / or wireless communication devices compatible with one or more different communication protocols. As a non-limiting example, the communication subsystem may be configured to communicate via a wireless telephone network or a wired or wireless local area network or wide area network (such as HDMI on a Wi-Fi connection). In some embodiments, the communication subsystem may allow the computing system 3100 to send messages to other devices and / or receive messages from other devices via a network such as the Internet.

[0075] Another example provides a computing device, comprising:

[0076] a first portion including a first display and a first touch sensor; and

[0077] A second portion includes a second display and a second touch sensor, the second portion being connected to the first portion via a hinge, the hinge defining a seam between the first display and the second display.

[0078] The computing device further includes a logic device and a storage device storing instructions, the instructions executable by the logic device to:

[0079] receiving, at the first display, a touch input for moving an application currently displayed on the first display but not on the second display to the second display;

[0080] detecting that the touch input releases the application within a predetermined area;

[0081] expanding the application across the first display and the second display such that a portion of application content is hidden behind the seam;

[0082] receiving touch input for moving the expanded application; and

[0083] The expanded application is moved in a direction in which the touch input moves the expanded application to reveal at least a portion of the application content hidden behind the seam.

[0084] The instructions may additionally or alternatively be executable to spread the application across the first display and the second display by applying a mask to a rendering of the displayed application in a location corresponding to the seam.

[0085] The instructions may additionally or alternatively be executed to:

[0086] receiving a touch input to move the expanded application to one of the first display and the second display; and

[0087] The expanded application is displayed on one of the first display and the second display.

[0088] The instructions may additionally or alternatively be executed to:

[0089] displaying one or more applications in a fixed application bar on each of the first display and the second display;

[0090] receiving a touch input to open an application folder on one of the first display and the second display, and in response displaying the application folder on the one of the first display and the second display; and

[0091] An application on the one of the first display and the second display is shifted to the other of the first display and the second display.

[0092] The predefined area may be a first predefined area, and the instructions may be additionally or alternatively executable to:

[0093] detecting a touch input to move the application toward the second display and release the application within a second predefined area; and

[0094] The application is moved to the second display.

[0095] The application may be a first application, and the instructions may additionally or alternatively be executable to:

[0096] displaying a second application on the second display;

[0097] Upon detecting that the touch input releases the application within the second predefined area, the first application is superimposed on the second application on the second display.

[0098] The instructions may additionally or alternatively be executable to close the second application after the first application is overlaid on top of the second application for a threshold amount of time.

[0099] The application may be a first application, and the instructions may additionally or alternatively be executable to:

[0100] displaying a second application on the second display;

[0101] detecting that a touch input releases the application within a second predefined area; and

[0102] The first application on the first display is swapped with the second application on the second display.

[0103] The application may be a first application, and the instructions may additionally or alternatively be executable to:

[0104] displaying a second application on the second display, wherein spreading the first application across the first display and the second display comprises overlaying a portion of the first application over the second application on the second display;

[0105] receiving a touch input for shrinking the first application; and

[0106] The first application is displayed on the first display and the second application is displayed on the second display.

[0107] The predefined area may be a first predefined area, and the instructions may be additionally or alternatively executable to:

[0108] detecting that a touch input releases the application within a second predefined area; and

[0109] Close the app in question.

[0110] The instructions may additionally or alternatively be executed to:

[0111] detecting a touch input comprising a swipe gesture; and

[0112] The application is moved to the second display.

[0113] The instructions may additionally or alternatively be executed to:

[0114] The application is scaled in size based at least in part on a direction of movement of the touch input.

[0115] The instructions may additionally or alternatively be executed to:

[0116] Prior to detecting the touch input releasing the application, a prompt is displayed indicating that the application will expand based at least in part on the touch input moving the application into the predetermined area.

[0117] Another example provides a computing device, comprising:

[0118] a first portion including a first display and a first touch sensor;

[0119] a second portion including a second display and a second touch sensor, the second portion being connected to the first portion via a hinge, the hinge defining a seam between the first display and the second display;

[0120] Logical devices; and

[0121] a storage device storing instructions executable by the logic machine to:

[0122] receiving, at the first display, a touch input to move an application from the first display to the second display;

[0123] When the touch input releases the application within the first predefined area, moving the application to the second display; and

[0124] When the touch input releases the application within a second predefined area, the application is expanded by displaying the application across the first display and the second display.

[0125] The application may be a first application, and the instructions may additionally or alternatively be executable to:

[0126] displaying a second application on the second display; and

[0127] When the user input releases the first application in a third predefined area, the first application on the first display is swapped with the second application on the second display by displaying the first application on the second display and displaying the second application on the first display.

[0128] The application may be a first application, and the instructions may additionally or alternatively be executable to:

[0129] displaying a second application on the second display;

[0130] When the first application is displayed on the first display, receiving a touch input at the first display to open a third application from the first application; and

[0131] The third application is displayed as an overlay on top of the first application.

[0132] The instructions may additionally or alternatively be executable to receive a touch input to close the third application, and to display the first application on the first display.

[0133] Another example provides a method implemented on a computing device, the computing device comprising a first portion and a second portion, the first portion comprising a first display and a first touch sensor, the second portion comprising a second display and a second touch sensor, the second portion being connected to the first portion via a hinge, the hinge defining a seam between the first display and the second display, the method comprising:

[0134] Displaying a first application on the first display;

[0135] displaying a second application on the second display;

[0136] receiving, at the first display, a touch input to move the first application to the second display;

[0137] detecting that the touch input releases the application within a predetermined area; and

[0138] The first application is superimposed over the second application on the second display based at least on the touch input releasing the application within the predetermined area.

[0139] The method may additionally or alternatively comprise:

[0140] receiving a touch input to move the first application to the first display; and

[0141] In response, the first application is displayed on the first display and the second application is displayed on the second display.

[0142] The method can additionally or alternatively include closing the second application after the first application is overlaid on top of the second application for a threshold amount of time.

[0143] It should be understood that the configurations and / or methods described herein are exemplary in nature, and these specific embodiments or examples should not be considered to have limiting significance, as many variations are possible. The specific routines or methods described herein may represent one or more of any number of processing strategies. Thus, the various actions illustrated and / or described may be performed in the illustrated and / or described order, in other orders, in parallel, or omitted. Likewise, the order of the processes described above may be changed.

[0144] The subject matter of the present disclosure includes all novel and non-obvious combinations and sub-combinations 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.

Claims

1. A computing device, comprising: a first portion including a first display and a first touch sensor; a second portion including a second display and a second touch sensor, the second portion being connected to the first portion via a hinge; Logical devices; as well as a storage device storing instructions executable by the logic device to: receiving, at the first display, a touch input for moving an application currently displayed on the first display but not on the second display to the second display; moving the application to the second display based at least on the touch input releasing the application within the first predefined area and the second display not currently displaying the second application, superimposing the application on top of the second application based at least on the touch input releasing the application within the first predefined area and the second display currently displaying the second application, releasing the application within a second predefined area different from the first predefined area based at least on the touch input, expanding the application across the first display and the second display; as well as Based at least on the touch input releasing the application within a third predefined area and the second display currently displaying the second application, the application on the first display is swapped with the second application on the second display.

2. The computing device of claim 1, wherein the instructions are executable to spread the application across the first display and the second display by applying a mask to the rendering of the displayed application in a location corresponding to a seam between the first display and the second display.

3. The computing device of claim 1, wherein the instructions are further executable to receive a touch input to move an expanded application to one of the first display and the second display, and to display the expanded application on one of the first display and the second display.

4. The computing device of claim 1 , wherein the instructions are executable to: displaying one or more pinned applications in a pinned application bar on each of the first display and the second display; receiving a touch input to open an application on one of the first display and the second display, and in response displaying the opened application on the one of the first display and the second display; as well as A stationary application on the one of the first display and the second display is shifted to the other of the first display and the second display.

5. The computing device of claim 1, wherein the application currently displayed on the first display is a first application, and wherein the instructions are further executable to close the second application after the first application is superimposed on the second application for a threshold amount of time.

6. The computing device of claim 1, wherein the application is a first application, wherein: Expanding the first application across the first display and the second display includes overlaying a portion of the first application on top of the second application on the second display, and further includes instructions capable of: receiving a touch input for shrinking the first application; as well as The first application is displayed on the first display and the second application is displayed on the second display. 7 . The computing device of claim 1 , wherein the instructions are further executable to detect that a touch input releases the application within a second predefined area and close the application.

8. The computing device of claim 1, wherein the instructions are further executable to detect a touch input comprising a swipe gesture and move the application to the second display.

9. The computing device of claim 1, wherein the instructions are executable to display a prompt prior to detecting that the touch input releases the application, the prompt indicating that the application will expand based at least in part on the touch input moving the application into the first predefined area.

10. A computing device comprising: a first portion including a first display and a first touch sensor; a second portion including a second display and a second touch sensor, the second portion being connected to the first portion via a hinge, the hinge defining a seam between the first display and the second display; Logical devices; as well as A storage device storing instructions executable by a logic machine to: receiving, at the first display, a touch input to move an application from the first display to the second display; displaying a first prompt image on the second display based at least on the touch input moving the application into a first predefined area and the second display not currently displaying a second application, the first prompt image indicating that the application will be moved to the second display upon release; moving the application to the second display based at least on the touch input releasing the application within the first predefined area and the second display not currently displaying the second application; displaying a second prompt image on the second display based at least on the touch input moving the application into a first predefined area and the second display currently displaying a second application, the second prompt image indicating that the application will be superimposed on the second application on the second display upon release; superimposing the application on top of the second application based at least on the touch input releasing the application within the predefined area and the second display currently displaying the second application, displaying a third prompt image on the first display and the second display based at least on the touch input to move the application into a second predefined area, the third prompt image indicating that the application will be expanded across the first display and the second display upon release, When the application is released within the second predefined area based at least on the touch input, the application is expanded by displaying the application across the first display and the second display, displaying a fourth prompt image on the first display and the second display based at least on the touch input moving the application into a third predefined area and the second display currently displaying the second application, the fourth prompt image indicating that the application will cause the application on the first display to be exchanged with the second application on the second display; as well as Based at least on the touch input releasing the application within a third predefined area and the second display currently displaying the second application, the application on the first display is swapped with the second application on the second display.

11. The computing device of claim 10, wherein the application currently displayed on the first display is a first application, and wherein the instructions are further executable to: When the first application is displayed on the first display and the second application is displayed on the second display, receiving a touch input at the first display to open a third application from the first application; and The third application is displayed as an overlay on top of the first application. 12 . The computing device of claim 11 , wherein the instructions are executable to receive a touch input to close the third application and display the first application on the first display.

13. A method implemented on a computing device, the computing device comprising a first portion and a second portion, the first portion comprising a first display and a first touch sensor, the second portion comprising a second display and a second touch sensor, the second portion being connected to the first portion via a hinge, the hinge defining a seam between the first display and the second display, the method comprising: Displaying a first application on the first display; receiving, at the first display, a touch input to move the first application to the second display; moving the application to the second display based at least on the touch input releasing the application within the first predefined area and the second display not currently displaying the second application, superimposing the first application on top of the second application on the second display based at least on the touch input releasing the application within the first predefined area and the second display currently displaying the second application, releasing the application within a second predefined area based at least on the touch input, and expanding the application across the first display and the second display; as well as Based at least on the touch input releasing the application within a third predefined area and the second display currently displaying the second application, the application on the first display is swapped with the second application on the second display.

14. The method of claim 13, further comprising: displaying the second application on the second display, overlaying the first application on top of the second application on the second display, receiving a touch input for moving the first application to the first display; as well as In response, the first application is displayed on the first display and the second application is displayed on the second display.

15. The method of claim 13, further comprising closing the second application after the first application is overlaid on top of the second application for a threshold amount of time.

16. A computer system comprising means for performing the method as claimed in any one of claims 13 to 15.

17. A computer-readable storage medium having instructions which, when executed, cause a machine to perform the method of any one of claims 13-15.

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