Information hiding method, electronic device, storage medium, chip system and computer program product

Abstract

Provided in the present application are an information hiding method, an electronic device, a storage medium, a chip system and a computer program product, which relate to the technical field of terminals. The method can be applied to an electronic device. The method comprises: displaying a first interface, the first interface comprising first information; in response to a first operation, displaying a first window in the first interface, the first window being a hidden window; in response to an operation of dragging the first information into the first window, displaying the first information in the first window; and in response to a second operation, cancelling the display of the first window in the first interface, and cancelling the display of the first information in the first interface. In this way, after the hidden window is invoked, the electronic device can display or add information to be hidden; and after the hidden window is folded, said information and the hidden window are hidden together, thereby hiding said information and improving the security of the hidden information.

Description

Information hiding methods, electronic devices, storage media, chip systems, and computer program products

[0001] This application claims priority to Chinese Patent Application No. 202411748720.6, filed on November 29, 2024, entitled "Information Hiding Method, Electronic Device, Storage Medium, Chip System and Computer Program Product", the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. Technical Field

[0002] This application relates to the field of terminal technology, and in particular to an information hiding method, electronic device, storage medium, chip system, and computer program product. Background Technology

[0003] With the continuous development of terminal technology, electronic devices are widely used in people's lives and work. These devices can store user information, such as contact information, chat logs, photos, shopping information, and financial information, which is easily stolen.

[0004] In possible implementations, electronic devices can employ various methods to encrypt user information to enhance its security. For example, electronic devices can use application locks to encrypt applications; they can also move user information to be hidden to a hidden space.

[0005] However, in potential implementations, application locks have relatively limited application scenarios. When multiple hidden applications are involved, users need to unlock each application individually, which is cumbersome. Similarly, when using hidden spaces, users need to enter the hidden space first and then view user information from there, which is also cumbersome. Summary of the Invention

[0006] This application provides an information hiding method, electronic device, storage medium, chip system, and computer program product. By adding hidden information (such as application icons, application cards, application windows, and shortcuts) to a hidden window and placing the hidden window outside the screen, information hiding is achieved, thereby improving information security.

[0007] In a first aspect, embodiments of this application provide an information hiding method applied to an electronic device. The method includes: displaying a first interface; the first interface including first information; responding to a first operation, displaying a first window on the first interface; wherein the first window is a hidden window; responding to an operation of dragging the first information to the first window, displaying the first information in the first window; and responding to a second operation, canceling the display of the first window on the first interface and canceling the display of the first information on the first interface.

[0008] This process corresponds to bringing up a hidden window, adding hidden information to the hidden window, and then collapsing the hidden window.

[0009] In this embodiment, the first interface can be a desktop or a negative one screen that includes hidden information. The first information can be an application icon, card, application window, and / or shortcut tool, etc. The first operation can be an operation to bring up the hidden window, and the second operation can be an operation to collapse the hidden window.

[0010] For example, the first interface corresponds to the interface shown in Figure 4a; the first operation corresponds to dragging to the right in the interface shown in Figure 4c; the first window corresponds to the operable hidden window 402 in the interface shown in Figure 4d; the first information corresponds to the music application icon 601; and the second operation corresponds to dragging to the left in the interface shown in Figure 6c.

[0011] For example, the first interface corresponds to the interface shown in Figure 9a; the first operation corresponds to dragging to the left in the interface shown in Figure 9c; the first window corresponds to the operable hidden window 901 in the interface shown in Figure 9d; the first information corresponds to the trip card 1003; and the second operation corresponds to dragging to the right in the interface shown in Figure 11c.

[0012] For example, the first interface corresponds to the interface shown in b in Figure 12; the first operation corresponds to dragging to the right in the interface shown in c in Figure 12; the first window corresponds to the operable hidden window 1204 in the interface shown in d in Figure 12; the first information corresponds to the floating window 1201 of the social application; and the second operation can correspond to dragging to the left in the interface shown in c in Figure 13.

[0013] For example, the first interface corresponds to the interface shown in Figure 14a; the first operation corresponds to dragging to the right in the interface shown in Figure 14b; the first window corresponds to the operable hidden window 1406 in the interface shown in Figure 14c; the first information corresponds to the ride-hailing service icon 1401; and the second operation corresponds to dragging to the left in the interface shown in Figure 15c.

[0014] In this way, after the hidden window is brought up, the electronic device can display or add hidden information; after the hidden window is closed, the hidden information and the hidden window are hidden together, thereby hiding the hidden information and improving the security of the hidden information.

[0015] In one possible implementation, after canceling the display of the first window in the first interface, the method further includes: displaying the first window in the first interface in response to a first operation; the first window includes first information; and displaying a second interface in response to a trigger operation on the first information, wherein the second interface is the interface of the target application and the first information corresponds to the target application.

[0016] This process corresponds to viewing the hidden information through a hidden window after it has been added.

[0017] Taking the first information as the email application icon 305 as an example, the first interface can correspond to the interface shown in Figure 4a, the first operation can correspond to dragging to the right in the interface shown in Figure 4c, and the first window can be, for example, the operable hidden window 402 in the interface shown in Figure 4d; the triggering operation for the first information can be a click operation on the email application icon 305; the second interface can correspond to the interface shown in Figure 5b, and the target application can be the email application.

[0018] In this way, after the hidden window is brought up, the user can use the hidden information in the hidden window, thus providing the user with a safe way to use hidden information.

[0019] In one possible implementation, in response to the first operation and before displaying the first window in the first interface, the method further includes: detecting an operation in which the user gazes at a first region, wherein the first region corresponds to one or more hidden windows, the one or more hidden windows including the first window.

[0020] Before recognizing the first operation, the electronic device can determine whether the user intends to use the hidden window by observing the gaze area, thereby improving the accuracy of responding to the first operation. In addition, different gaze areas can also be used to set different hidden windows. For example, the first area may correspond to gaze area 301 in the interface shown in Figure 3, or gaze areas 801, 802, 803, and 804 in the interface shown in Figure 8, etc. The embodiments of this application do not limit the range, number, and position of the gaze areas.

[0021] In this way, the misidentification between the first operation and the regular gesture operation can be reduced by using the gaze area, thereby improving the accuracy of responding to the first operation. At the same time, after detecting the user's gaze area, the electronic device begins to perform gesture recognition, which can effectively reduce the working time of sensors (such as touch sensors, cameras, infrared sensors, and depth sensors), thereby reducing the power consumption of the electronic device. In addition, multiple gaze areas can also correspond to multiple hidden windows, so that multiple hidden windows can play a role in classification and organization.

[0022] In one possible implementation, before displaying the first window on the first interface, the method further includes: displaying the first window on the first interface when the user's feature information is the same as the feature information of a preset user, wherein the feature information of the preset user includes the preset user's facial information, fingerprint information, voice information, iris information and / or password information.

[0023] Before displaying the hidden window, the electronic device performs feature recognition on the current user to determine if the current user is a preset user capable of setting the hidden window. In some embodiments, the electronic device can collect and obtain the preset user's feature information when the hidden window is displayed for the first time; subsequently, each time the electronic device displays the hidden window, it can use the preset user's feature information to verify the current user's identity. In other embodiments, the preset user's feature information may also be obtained by the preset user in the settings application of the electronic device for the hidden function of this application embodiment; for example, the settings application can provide controls for recording facial information, fingerprint information, voice information, iris information, and / or password information; after the user triggers the relevant controls, the electronic device records the user's relevant information. In still other embodiments, the preset user's feature information may be obtained from other locking functions of the electronic device; for example, the electronic device can set the feature information of the user used to unlock the lock screen interface and / or application lock interface as the preset user's feature information. This application embodiment does not limit this. In this way, the security of hidden information can be further improved by using the user's feature information during the process of adding or viewing hidden information.

[0024] In one possible implementation, the first operation includes a first air gesture, and the second operation includes a second air gesture, wherein the first air gesture is the movement of the touch object in a first direction within the recognition range of the electronic device, and the second air gesture is the movement of the touch object in a second direction within the recognition range of the electronic device, the first direction being opposite to the second direction; before displaying the first window in the first interface, the method further includes: the first window being placed in the outer region of the second direction side of the screen.

[0025] In this embodiment, the operations for displaying and collapsing the hidden window can be either contact gestures or non-contact gestures (also known as air gestures, air gestures, etc.). It is understood that contact gestures are more common when using electronic devices, such as switching desktops by swiping left or right. When performing the first and second operations on the desktop, contact gestures may accidentally trigger related operations in the gesture navigation bar. Therefore, in this embodiment, the first and second operations can be non-contact gestures.

[0026] Furthermore, the movement direction of the first operation is opposite to the movement direction of the second operation; the hiding position of the hidden window is opposite to the movement direction of the first operation but the same as the movement direction of the second operation. For example, in Figure 3, the hidden window 302 is located in the outer area on the left side of the electronic device screen, with the first direction being the right and the second direction being the left; the hidden window 303 is located in the outer area on the right side of the electronic device screen, with the first direction being the left and the second direction being the right. The first direction can also be upward or downward, and the second direction can be downward or upward accordingly. This application embodiment does not limit this.

[0027] In this way, the accuracy of bringing up or collapsing a hidden window can be improved through air gestures; at the same time, the above-mentioned directional settings can provide users with a continuous visual experience. For example, based on the first operation, the hidden window can be moved from the second direction to the first direction, thus presenting the effect of bringing up the hidden window; or, based on the second operation, the hidden window can be moved from the first direction to the second direction, thus presenting the effect of collapsing the hidden window.

[0028] In one possible implementation, the first interface further includes second information, and the method further includes: in response to a third operation, displaying a second window in the first interface; wherein the third operation is different from the first operation, and the second window is a hidden window; the second window is different from the first window; in response to an operation of dragging the second information into the second window, displaying the second information in the second window; in response to a fourth operation, de-displaying the second window in the first interface, and de-displaying the second information in the first interface; the fourth operation is different from the second operation.

[0029] This process can correspond to bringing up a hidden window, adding hidden information to the hidden window, and collapsing the hidden window. The second information can be an application icon, card, application window, and / or shortcut tool, etc.; the third operation can be the operation to bring up the hidden window, and the second window can be the hidden window; the fourth operation can be the operation to collapse the hidden window.

[0030] It should be noted that, compared to the process of adding the first information in the first window in the aforementioned embodiments, it can be seen that: one gaze area can correspond to multiple hidden windows, such as a first window and a second window, which are different hidden windows. To facilitate the distinction between the first and second windows, the hidden position of the first window off-screen is different from that of the second window. Therefore, the operation for bringing up or collapsing the second window is different from the operation for bringing up or collapsing the first window; that is, the first operation is different from the third operation, and the second operation is different from the fourth operation.

[0031] For example, in Figure 7, the gaze area 301 corresponds to four hidden windows: hidden window 302, hidden window 303, hidden window 701, and hidden window 702. The operation to bring up hidden window 302 is to drag to the right, and the operation to collapse hidden window 302 is to drag to the left. The operation to bring up hidden window 303 is to drag to the left, and the operation to collapse hidden window 303 is to drag to the right. The operation to bring up hidden window 701 is to drag down, and the operation to collapse hidden window 701 is to drag up. The operation to bring up hidden window 702 is to drag up, and the operation to collapse hidden window 702 is to drag down.

[0032] In this way, the same viewing area can correspond to multiple hidden windows. Users can place different types of hidden information in different hidden windows. Subsequently, users can pull up the corresponding hidden window according to the category of hidden information and quickly find the hidden information, thereby improving the efficiency of hidden information retrieval.

[0033] In one possible implementation, the method further includes: displaying a first interface; the first interface including third information; detecting a user's gaze on a second region, the second region not overlapping with the first region; the second region corresponding to one or more hidden windows; the one or more hidden windows corresponding to the second region being different from the one or more hidden windows corresponding to the first region; wherein the one or more hidden windows corresponding to the second region include a third window; in response to a fifth operation, displaying the third window on the first interface; in response to an operation of dragging the third information to the third window, displaying the third information in the third window; and in response to a sixth operation, de-displaying the third window on the first interface and de-displaying the third information on the first interface.

[0034] This process corresponds to bringing up a hidden window, adding hidden information to the hidden window, and then collapsing the hidden window.

[0035] The third piece of information can be an application icon, card, application window, and / or shortcut tool, the second area can be the viewing area, the third window can be a hidden window, the fifth operation can be an operation to bring up the hidden window, and the sixth operation can be an operation to collapse the hidden window.

[0036] It should be noted that, compared with the process of adding the first information in the first window in the aforementioned embodiments, it can be seen that: the electronic device can also set multiple gaze areas, such as a first area and a second area; to facilitate the distinction between the first area and the second area, their positions on the screen are different. For example, in Figure 8, the multiple gaze areas can be gaze area 801, gaze area 802, gaze area 803, and gaze area 804, etc., and these four gaze areas are located in the upper left, upper right, lower left, and lower right areas of the screen, respectively.

[0037] Taking a first region as the gaze area 801 and a first window as a hidden window 805; and a second region as the gaze area 802 and a third window as a hidden window 806 as an example, the electronic device can bring up the hidden window 805 through the gaze area 801 and a gesture operation; it can also bring up the hidden window 806 through the gaze area 802 and a gesture operation. In some embodiments, the gesture for bringing up the hidden window can be the same for different gaze areas, and the gesture for closing the hidden window can be the same. For example, the first operation can be the same as the fifth operation, and the second operation can be the same as the sixth operation, thereby reducing the complexity of user gesture operations when there are multiple gaze areas.

[0038] In this way, electronic devices can set up corresponding hidden windows in different viewing areas. Different types of hidden information can be placed in different hidden windows. Subsequently, users can pull up the corresponding hidden window according to the category of hidden information and quickly find the hidden information, thereby improving the efficiency of hidden information retrieval.

[0039] In one possible implementation, after the first window is displayed in the first interface, the method further includes: in response to a seventh operation on the first window, moving the first window from a first position to a second position; the first position is different from the second position; the seventh operation includes a drag operation; in response to an eighth operation on the first window, scaling the first window from a first size to a second size, the first size is different from the second size; the eighth operation includes a pinch operation.

[0040] This process corresponds to adjusting the position and size of the hidden window.

[0041] For example, the first window in the first position can correspond to the operable hidden window 901 in the interface shown in Figure 10b; the first window in the second position can correspond to the operable hidden window 901 in the interface shown in Figure 10c; the electronic device can move the position of the hidden window 901 based on drag operations. And / or, the electronic device can adjust the size of the hidden window through operations such as pinching with two fingers or spreading with two fingers.

[0042] In this way, electronic devices can reduce the overlap between the hidden window and the hidden information by adjusting the position and size of the hidden window, making it easier to drag and drop the hidden information into the hidden window.

[0043] In one possible implementation, the first information includes an icon of a first application; displaying the first information in the first window in response to an operation of dragging the first information to the first window includes: displaying the icon of the first application in the first window in response to an operation of dragging the icon of the first application to the first window.

[0044] The first piece of information can be the application icon. This allows electronic devices to add the application icon to a hidden window and then collapse the hidden window, effectively encrypting the application and enhancing the security of information within it.

[0045] In one possible implementation, after displaying the icon of the first application in the first window, the method further includes: in response to an operation of dragging the icon of the second application to the first window, displaying the icons of the first application and the second application in the first window; the second application is different from the first application.

[0046] When hiding information, electronic devices can add application icons to the same hidden window. For example, the first window can be the operable hidden window 402 in the interface shown in Figure 6a; the icons of the first application can be the game application icon 304 and / or the email application icon 305 in the interface shown in Figure 6a; the icon of the second application can be the music application icon 601 in the interface shown in Figure 6b. Then, in the interface shown in Figure 6c, the operable hidden window 402 can display the game application icon 304, the email application icon 305, and the music application icon 601. In this way, electronic devices can add hidden information of the same modality (e.g., application icons) to the same hidden window. Later, when a user wants to use a hidden application, they can quickly search for it in the hidden window where the application icons are stored, thereby improving the efficiency of searching for hidden information.

[0047] In one possible implementation, the second information includes a card from a third application. This scenario corresponds to the embodiments shown in Figures 9 to 11, where the card from the third application can be, for example, the trip card 1003 in the interface shown in Figure 11a. In this way, the electronic device can add the application's card to a hidden window and then collapse the hidden window, thereby encrypting the application's card and improving information security.

[0048] In one possible implementation, the third information includes the window of the fourth application; in response to the sixth operation, the third window is de-displayed in the first interface, and the third information is de-displayed in the first interface, including: in response to the sixth operation, the third window, the window of the fourth application, and the icon of the fourth application are de-displayed in the first interface.

[0049] This process corresponds to the embodiments shown in Figures 12-13. The hidden information can be an application window; for example, the window of the fourth application can correspond to the floating window 1201 of the social application in the interface shown in Figure 13a. It should be noted that after hiding the application window in the hidden window, the application window and application icon on the desktop are simultaneously hidden to prevent other users from accessing the application window through the application icon. In this way, the electronic device can add the application window to the hidden window and collapse the hidden window, thereby encrypting the application window and improving information security. Furthermore, the method of hiding the application window in this embodiment can help users hide and save information in the application window they are currently processing, and the electronic device can quickly restore the content of the application window before it was hidden.

[0050] One possible implementation further includes: running a fourth application in the background and adding a keep-alive flag to the fourth application; wherein adding the keep-alive flag includes: adding the information of the fourth application to a keep-alive whitelist, the keep-alive whitelist being used to keep processes in memory alive, and the information of the fourth application including one or more of the following: the process ID of the fourth application, the process name of the fourth application, and / or the package name of the fourth application; or, setting the priority of the fourth application to the first priority, the first priority being higher than the original priority of the fourth application.

[0051] This process corresponds to the embodiment shown in Figure 20. Adding a keep-alive flag can, for example, involve adding the application's information to a keep-alive whitelist and / or marking the application's information as high priority. In this way, the electronic device can ensure the application runs in the background while the application window is hidden, and the electronic device can quickly launch the application window based on its icon, reducing user waiting time.

[0052] In one possible implementation, the hidden window of the electronic device also includes a fourth window, which contains a shortcut tool for a fourth application; the shortcut tool for the fourth application is used to quickly launch services in the fourth application.

[0053] This scenario corresponds to the embodiments shown in Figures 14 and 15, where the hidden information can be a shortcut tool for an application. In this way, the electronic device can add the shortcut tool to a hidden window and then collapse the hidden window, thereby encrypting the shortcut tool and improving information security.

[0054] It should be noted that, in this embodiment, the modality and hiding process of hidden information are illustrated by placing the application icon in the first window, the application card in the second window, the application window in the third window, and the shortcut tool in the fourth window. A comparison shows that electronic devices can place different modalities of hidden information through different hidden windows, which can help classify and organize the hidden information. Subsequently, users can quickly find the corresponding hidden information based on its modality, improving the efficiency of hidden information retrieval.

[0055] In practical applications, an electronic device can be configured with a gaze region, which corresponds to multiple hidden windows, and any hidden window can hold hidden information of any modality. Alternatively, the electronic device can also be configured with multiple gaze regions, each corresponding to a hidden window, and any hidden window can hold hidden information of any modality. Furthermore, the electronic device can also be configured with multiple gaze regions, each corresponding to multiple hidden windows, and any hidden window can hold hidden information of any modality. That is, the specific implementation of the electronic device can be any of the above embodiments, or a combination of the above embodiments, and the embodiments in this application do not limit this.

[0056] In one possible implementation, after displaying the second interface, the method further includes: in response to the ninth operation, displaying a multitasking interface; wherein the multitasking interface includes the content and icon of the target application, and both the content and icon of the target application are blurred; or, the multitasking interface does not include the content and icon of the target application.

[0057] This process corresponds to the embodiment shown in Figure 5. After displaying the application interface, the application can be pushed to the background, and then the multitasking interface can be accessed through the ninth operation; the multitasking interface can be, for example, the interface shown in d in Figure 5. The target application can be, for example, an email application, the content of which can be an email application card 502, and the icon of which can be an email application icon 503. In the interface shown in d in Figure 5, both the email application card 502 and the email application icon 503 are blurred to hide the hidden information. Alternatively, in the multitasking interface, the electronic device may not display, for example, the email application card and the email application icon, to hide the hidden information. In this way, the electronic device can also protect the hidden information during the process of going to the background, thereby improving the information security of the overall process of viewing the hidden information.

[0058] In one possible implementation, after the first window is displayed on the first interface, the method further includes: in response to a tenth operation on the first information, canceling the display of the first information in the first window; and in response to a second operation, canceling the display of the first window on the first interface and displaying the first information on the first interface.

[0059] This process corresponds to the embodiment shown in Figure 17. After adding hidden information to the hidden window, the electronic device can also remove the hidden information from the hidden window. For example, after dragging the hidden information out of the hidden window, the electronic device can display the hidden information on the desktop and undisplay the hidden information in the hidden window. Alternatively, for example, the hidden information in the hidden window can be deleted using delete controls, such as delete control 1704 and delete control 1705. In this way, the hidden information in the hidden window can be managed; users can use the same operation as adding hidden information to delete hidden information, making the operation more consistent and improving the user experience; or, users can quickly delete multiple pieces of hidden information using the delete controls, simplifying user operations.

[0060] In a second aspect, embodiments of this application provide an electronic device, including a processor and a memory, wherein the memory is used to store code instructions and the processor is used to execute the code instructions to perform the methods described in the first aspect or any possible implementation thereof.

[0061] Thirdly, embodiments of this application provide a computer-readable storage medium storing a computer program or instructions that, when executed on a computer, cause the computer to perform the methods described in the first aspect or any possible implementation thereof.

[0062] Fourthly, embodiments of this application provide a computer program product including a computer program, which, when run on a computer, causes the computer to perform the methods described in the first aspect or any possible implementation of the first aspect.

[0063] Fifthly, this application provides a chip or chip system including at least one processor and a communication interface. The communication interface and the at least one processor are interconnected via a circuit. The at least one processor is used to run computer programs or instructions to perform the methods described in the first aspect or any possible implementation thereof. The communication interface in the chip can be an input / output interface, pins, or circuits, etc.

[0064] In one possible implementation, the chip or chip system described above in this application further includes at least one memory storing instructions. The memory can be an internal storage unit of the chip, such as a register or cache, or it can be a storage unit of the chip itself (e.g., read-only memory, random access memory, etc.).

[0065] It should be understood that the second to fifth aspects of this application correspond to the technical solutions of the first aspect of this application, and the beneficial effects achieved by each aspect and the corresponding feasible implementation are similar, and will not be repeated here. Attached Figure Description

[0066] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of the structure of the electronic device provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0067] Figure 2 is a software structure block diagram of the electronic device provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0068] Figure 3 is a schematic diagram of an interface in the information hiding method provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0069] Figure 4 is a schematic diagram of an interface for bringing up a hidden window in an information hiding method provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0070] Figure 5 is a schematic diagram of the interface for viewing hidden information of application icon class in the information hiding method provided in the embodiment of this application;

[0071] Figure 6 is a schematic diagram of the interface for adding an application icon to a hidden window in the information hiding method provided in the embodiment of this application;

[0072] Figure 7 is a schematic diagram of an interface in the information hiding method provided in this application, where a single gaze area corresponds to multiple hidden windows;

[0073] Figure 8 is a schematic diagram of an interface in the information hiding method provided in this application, where a single gaze area corresponds to multiple hidden windows;

[0074] Figure 9 is a schematic diagram of another interface for bringing up a hidden window in the information hiding method provided in the embodiments of this application;

[0075] Figure 10 is a schematic diagram of the interface for adjusting the hidden window in the information hiding method provided in the embodiment of this application;

[0076] Figure 11 is a schematic diagram of the interface for adding service cards in a hidden window in the information hiding method provided in the embodiment of this application;

[0077] Figure 12 is a schematic diagram of another interface for bringing up a hidden window in the information hiding method provided in the embodiments of this application;

[0078] Figure 13 is a schematic diagram of the interface for adding an application window to a hidden window in the information hiding method provided in the embodiment of this application;

[0079] Figure 14 is a schematic diagram of another interface for bringing up a hidden window in the information hiding method provided in the embodiments of this application;

[0080] Figure 15 is a schematic diagram of the interface for adding a shortcut tool in a hidden window in the information hiding method provided in the embodiment of this application;

[0081] Figure 16 is a schematic diagram of another interface for bringing up a hidden window in the information hiding method provided in the embodiments of this application;

[0082] Figure 17 is a schematic diagram of the interface for deleting hidden information in a hidden window in the information hiding method provided in the embodiment of this application;

[0083] Figure 18 is a flowchart illustrating the process of adding hidden information in the information hiding method provided in this application embodiment;

[0084] Figure 19 is a flowchart illustrating the process of viewing hidden information in the information hiding method provided in this application embodiment;

[0085] Figure 20 is a flowchart illustrating the keep-alive application window in the information hiding method provided in this application embodiment;

[0086] Figure 21 is a schematic diagram of the information hiding device provided in an embodiment of this application. Detailed Implementation

[0087] To facilitate understanding, the relevant terms and concepts involved in the embodiments of this application will be introduced below:

[0088] 1. Electronic equipment

[0089] The electronic devices in this application embodiment can be referred to as user equipment (UE), terminal, etc. For example, electronic devices can be mobile phones, tablets, personal digital assistants (PDAs), handheld devices with wireless communication capabilities, computing devices, in-vehicle devices or wearable devices, virtual reality (VR) terminal devices, augmented reality (AR) terminal devices, wireless terminals in industrial control, wireless terminals in smart homes, etc. The form of the electronic devices is not specifically limited in this application embodiment.

[0090] 2. Other terms

[0091] In this application, the terms "exemplary" or "for example" are used to indicate that something is an example, illustration, or description. Any embodiment or design described as "exemplary" or "for example" in this application should not be construed as being more preferred or advantageous than other embodiments or designs. Specifically, the use of terms such as "exemplary" or "for example" is intended to present the relevant concepts in a specific manner.

[0092] In this application embodiment, "at least one" refers to one or more, and "more than one" refers to two or more. "And / or" describes the relationship between related objects, indicating that three relationships can exist. For example, A and / or B can represent: A alone, A and B simultaneously, or B alone, where A and B can be singular or plural. The character " / " generally indicates that the preceding and following related objects are in an "or" relationship. "At least one of the following" or similar expressions refer to any combination of these items, including any combination of single or plural items. For example, at least one of a, b, or c can represent: a, b, c, ab, ac, bc, or abc, where a, b, and c can be single or multiple.

[0093] It should be noted that the phrase "at...time" in the embodiments of this application can refer to the instant at which a certain situation occurs, or to a period of time after the occurrence of a certain situation; the embodiments of this application do not specifically limit this. Furthermore, the display interface provided in the embodiments of this application is merely an example, and the display interface may include more or less content.

[0094] In possible implementations, electronic devices can employ various methods to encrypt user information in order to enhance its security.

[0095] For example, electronic devices can be equipped with an application lock function. When an application is encrypted with an application lock, the user can unlock the application by means of facial recognition, fingerprint unlock, or password unlock when they want to use the application. After successful unlocking, the electronic device can open the corresponding application.

[0096] Understandably, when a user uses multiple applications encrypted with App Lock, they need to unlock the App Lock each time they open an application. For example, a user needs to unlock the App Lock once when using a social media application; and again when returning to the home screen and opening a game application. Repeated unlocking when switching between multiple encrypted applications is cumbersome for the user. Furthermore, sometimes users want others to be unable to see which applications are installed on their electronic devices from the home screen; since the App Lock function does not support hiding application icons, it may not meet these needs.

[0097] For example, electronic devices can move user information to be hidden into a hidden space. A hidden space creates a separate, encrypted space within the electronic device for storing hidden user information. After enabling hidden space mode, the electronic device can switch between normal mode and hidden space mode. For instance, in normal mode, the electronic device can install multiple applications with lower privacy requirements and display these applications on the normal desktop. After switching to hidden space mode, the electronic device can install multiple applications with higher privacy requirements and display their icons on the hidden space desktop. The applications on the normal desktop are different from those on the hidden space desktop.

[0098] In normal mode, in response to an operation to switch to hidden space mode, the electronic device can unlock the hidden space using user-inputted facial information, fingerprint information, or password information. After successful unlocking, the electronic device switches to hidden space mode and displays hidden application icons on the hidden space desktop.

[0099] Understandably, when using the hidden space to encrypt and protect user information, users need to switch their electronic devices from regular mode to hidden space mode, which is still a rather cumbersome process.

[0100] In view of this, embodiments of this application provide an information hiding method, which divides the display area of ​​an electronic device into a gaze area and a non-gaze area; the gaze area corresponds to one or more different hidden windows, for example, the gaze area corresponds to hidden window 1 and hidden window 2; hidden information can be placed in the hidden windows, such as application icons, cards, shortcuts, and application windows. The hidden windows are hidden off-screen; the electronic device may not display hidden information when the hidden windows are not invoked. The electronic device can invoke the hidden windows based on the user's gaze and specific gesture operations; for example, when the user's gaze is within the gaze area, the electronic device can use gesture operation 1 to move hidden window 1 from off-screen to on-screen and display the hidden information in hidden window 1; subsequently, the user can use the electronic device to view the hidden information in hidden window 1; as another example, the electronic device can use gesture operation 2 to move hidden window 2 from off-screen to on-screen and display the hidden information in hidden window 2; subsequently, the user can use the electronic device to view the hidden information in hidden window 2.

[0101] In this way, electronic devices can quickly retrieve hidden information based on the user's gaze and gestures, improving the efficiency of users obtaining hidden information. At the same time, hidden information of the same modality can be clustered and managed, making it easier to manage and find hidden information; for example, electronic devices may include multiple hidden windows, and different windows can store hidden information of different modalities; hidden window 1, for example, is used to store application icons, and hidden window 2, for example, is used to store service cards.

[0102] To better understand the embodiments of this application, the structure of the electronic device of this application is described below:

[0103] Figure 1 shows a schematic diagram of the structure of electronic device 100. Electronic device 100 may include a processor 110, an external memory interface 120, an internal memory 121, a universal serial bus (USB) interface 130, a charging management module 140, a power management module 141, a battery 142, antenna 1, antenna 2, a mobile communication module 150, a wireless communication module 160, an audio module 170, a speaker 170A, a receiver 170B, a microphone 170C, a headphone jack 170D, a sensor module 180, buttons 190, a motor 191, an indicator 192, a camera 193, a display screen 194, a subscriber identification module (SIM) card interface 195, and an embedded secure element (eSE) 196, etc. The sensor module 180 may include a pressure sensor 180A, a gyroscope sensor 180B, a barometric pressure sensor 180C, a magnetic sensor 180D, an accelerometer sensor 180E, a distance sensor 180F, a proximity sensor 180G, a fingerprint sensor 180H, a temperature sensor 180J, a touch sensor 180K, an ambient light sensor 180L, a bone conduction sensor 180M, etc.

[0104] It is understood that the structures illustrated in the embodiments of this application do not constitute a specific limitation on the electronic device 100. In other embodiments of this application, the electronic device 100 may include more or fewer components than illustrated, or combine some components, or split some components, or have different component arrangements. The illustrated components may be implemented in hardware, software, or a combination of software and hardware.

[0105] Processor 110 may include one or more processing units, such as application processors (APs), modem processors, graphics processing units (GPUs), image signal processors (ISPs), controllers, video codecs, digital signal processors (DSPs), baseband processors, and / or neural network processing units (NPUs). Different processing units may be independent devices or integrated into one or more processors. In this embodiment, processor 110 can be used to execute information processing flows related to the information hiding method.

[0106] Electronic device 100 implements display functions through GPU, display screen 194, and application processor.

[0107] The display screen 194 is used to display images, videos, etc. For example, the display screen 194 can be the screen in the embodiments of this application, which can be used to display the interface shown in Figures 3 to 17 to realize the hiding and display of hidden information.

[0108] Electronic device 100 can perform shooting functions through ISP, camera 193, video codec, GPU, display 194 and application processor.

[0109] Camera 193 is used to capture still images or videos. In this embodiment, camera 193 can be used to acquire images, such as images of a user's face, eyes, and hands, to facilitate user identity verification, identification of the user's gaze range, and recognition of gesture operations.

[0110] An NPU (Neural Processing Unit) is a neural network (NN) computing processor that, by drawing inspiration from the structure of biological neural networks, such as the transmission patterns between neurons in the human brain, rapidly processes input information and can continuously learn on its own. Through an NPU, applications such as intelligent cognition in an electronic device 100 can be realized. For example, in this embodiment, the electronic device can support facial recognition, eye gaze recognition, and gesture recognition.

[0111] The internal memory 121 can be used to store computer executable program code, which includes instructions. The internal memory 121 may include a program storage area and a data storage area. In this embodiment, the internal memory 121 can be used to store the characteristic information of a preset user, and the binding relationship between the preset user's characteristic information and a hidden window, etc.

[0112] Touch sensor 180K, also known as a "touch device," can be located on display screen 194. The touch sensor 180K and display screen 194 together form a touchscreen, also known as a "touchscreen." Touch sensor 180K is used to detect touch operations applied to or near it. The touch sensor can transmit the detected touch operations to the application processor to determine the type of touch event. In this embodiment, touch sensor 180K can be used to receive and report user actions such as clicks, long presses, swipes, and drags.

[0113] The software system of electronic device 100 can adopt a layered architecture, event-driven architecture, microkernel architecture, microservice architecture, or cloud architecture, etc. This application embodiment uses the layered architecture Android system as an example to exemplify the software structure of electronic device 100.

[0114] Please refer to Figure 2, which is a schematic diagram of the software architecture of an electronic device 100 provided in an embodiment of this application. The layered architecture divides the software into several layers, each with a clear role and division of labor. The layers communicate with each other through software interfaces. In some embodiments, the operating system of the electronic device 100 is divided into four layers, from top to bottom: application layer, application framework layer, Android runtime, system layer, hardware abstraction layer (HAL), and kernel layer.

[0115] The application layer can include a series of application packages.

[0116] As shown in Figure 2, the application package can include applications such as desktop application (launcher), camera, phone, map, music, settings, email, video and social applications.

[0117] The Launcher is the desktop launcher for an electronic device. The desktop UI of an electronic device is collectively referred to as the launcher. The launcher can be used to display and manage other applications on the electronic device. For example, when an electronic device receives a trigger action on an application icon on the desktop, the device can launch that application based on the launcher.

[0118] In this embodiment, after adding hidden information to the hidden window, the Launcher can control the desktop to no longer display the application icons, cards, and shortcuts corresponding to the hidden information. Furthermore, before dragging the hidden information from the desktop to the hidden window, the Launcher can control the desktop to display application icons, cards, etc., that move with the touched object.

[0119] Settings applications can be used to manage and adjust various functions in electronic devices. For example, an electronic device may support a hidden function, and the switch for this hidden function can be set in the settings application. The electronic device can then enable the hidden function provided in the embodiments of this application based on the settings application.

[0120] The application framework layer provides application programming interfaces (APIs) and a programming framework for applications in the application layer. The application framework layer includes some predefined functions.

[0121] As shown in Figure 2, the application framework layer may include a window management module, a permission management module, a content provider, a notification manager, a view system, a resource manager, etc.

[0122] The window management module can be used to manage window programs. The window manager can obtain the screen size, determine if a status bar exists, lock the screen, and capture the screen, etc. In this embodiment, the window management module can be used to control the display and hiding of hidden windows.

[0123] The permission management module can be used to manage user access permissions to the system. For example, the permission management module can be used to verify user identity and assign access permissions to users. In this embodiment, the permission management module can store the binding relationship between preset user feature information and hidden windows. Subsequently, after successful user authentication, the permission management module can grant the user permission to use the corresponding hidden window.

[0124] Content providers store and retrieve data, making that data accessible to applications. This data can include videos, images, audio, phone calls made and received, browsing history and bookmarks, phone books, and more.

[0125] The notification manager allows applications to display notification information in the status bar. It can be used to convey informational messages and can disappear automatically after a short time without user interaction.

[0126] A view system includes visual controls, such as controls for displaying text and controls for displaying images. View systems can be used to build applications. A display interface can consist of one or more views.

[0127] The file explorer provides applications with various resources, such as localized strings, icons, images, layout files, video files, and more.

[0128] The Android Runtime consists of core libraries and a virtual machine. The Android runtime is responsible for the scheduling and management of the Android system.

[0129] The core library consists of two parts: one part is the functionalities that need to be called by the Java language, and the other part is the Android core library.

[0130] The application layer and application framework layer run in a virtual machine. The virtual machine executes the Java files of the application layer and application framework layer as binary files. The virtual machine is used to perform functions such as object lifecycle management, stack management, thread management, security and exception management, and garbage collection.

[0131] System libraries can include multiple functional modules. For example, a surface manager, media libraries, 3D graphics processing libraries (such as OpenGL ES), and 2D graphics engines (such as SGL).

[0132] The Surface Manager is used to manage the display subsystem and provides the blending of 2D and 3D layers for multiple applications.

[0133] The media library supports playback and recording of various common audio and video formats, as well as still image files. It supports multiple audio and video encoding formats, such as MPEG4, H.264, MP3, AAC, AMR, JPG, and PNG.

[0134] The 3D graphics processing library is used to implement 3D graphics drawing, image rendering, compositing, layer processing, etc.

[0135] A 2D graphics engine is a graphics engine for 2D drawing.

[0136] The hardware abstraction layer can contain multiple library modules, such as camera library modules and algorithm library modules. The Android system can load the corresponding library modules for the device hardware, thereby enabling the application framework layer to access the device hardware. In this embodiment, the hardware abstraction layer may include a touch management module, a gesture recognition module, a gaze recognition module, and a face recognition module, etc.

[0137] The touch management module identifies user touch events and distributes them to the appropriate software modules. The gesture recognition module recognizes user air gestures. The gaze recognition module identifies the position of the user's gaze on the screen. The face recognition module verifies the user's identity using facial information.

[0138] The kernel layer is the layer between hardware and software. It includes at least display drivers, camera drivers, and sensor drivers.

[0139] The information hiding method provided in this application embodiment will be briefly described below with reference to Figure 3. As shown in Figure 3:

[0140] In this embodiment, the electronic device may have one or more hidden windows set outside the screen, which can be used to store hidden information. The electronic device does not display the hidden information before the hidden window is invoked; after the hidden window is invoked, the electronic device can display the hidden information. The electronic device can invoke the hidden window via gesture operation.

[0141] It is understandable that the gesture operation used to bring up the hidden window is largely the same as a regular gesture operation. To reduce the possibility of misidentification between the user's gesture operation to bring up the hidden window and a regular gesture operation, this embodiment of the application can first identify whether the user intends to view the hidden information. If the user intends to view the hidden information, the electronic device can recognize the gesture operation as a gesture operation to bring up the hidden window. If the user does not intend to view the hidden information, the electronic device can recognize the gesture operation as a regular gesture operation; thereby reducing the possibility of accidentally bringing up the hidden information.

[0142] In this embodiment, the electronic device can identify whether a user intends to view hidden information by observing the gaze area. For example, the display area of ​​the electronic device can be partitioned, with each gaze area corresponding to one or more hidden windows, each containing one or more pieces of hidden information. When the electronic device detects that the user's gaze is within the gaze area, it can bring up the corresponding hidden window via a gesture. This embodiment can also use other methods to determine whether a user intends to view hidden information. For instance, the electronic device can be configured with a control; in response to an operation on this control, the electronic device can enter a state capable of recognizing gestures used to bring up hidden information; subsequently, the hidden window can be brought up based on the gesture.

[0143] Optionally, to reduce the chance of accidentally accessing hidden information and to minimize conflicts between gesture operations and the gesture navigation bar, in this embodiment, the gesture operation used to access the hidden window can be an air gesture (also known as an aerial gesture), which is a non-contact gesture operation. For example, air gesture operations may include pulling left, pulling right, pulling up, and pulling down.

[0144] Pulling to the left moves a touch object (user's finger or stylus) from right to left on the screen. A distance exists between the touch object and the screen, but this distance is less than a preset distance, which characterizes the electronic device's recognition range. The electronic device can capture user gestures using a camera to recognize their actions; the recognition range of the electronic device can be the camera's field of view. Alternatively, the electronic device can detect user gestures using an infrared sensor to recognize their actions; the recognition range of the electronic device can be the infrared sensor's detection range. Furthermore, the electronic device can detect the distance between the touch object and the screen using a depth sensor to recognize user gestures; the recognition range of the electronic device can be the depth sensor's detection range. This application's embodiments do not impose limitations on these methods.

[0145] Correspondingly, swiping to the right moves the touch object from left to right on the screen, with a distance between the touch object and the screen that is less than a preset distance. Swiping up moves the touch object from bottom to top on the screen, with a distance between the touch object and the screen that is less than a preset distance. Swiping down moves the touch object from top to bottom on the screen, with a distance between the touch object and the screen that is less than a preset distance.

[0146] Specifically, referring to Figure 3, after the screen is turned on, the screen of the electronic device can be the aforementioned display area. The display area includes one or more gaze areas, which are used to manage hidden windows in different hidden locations, and the hidden windows are used to store one or more pieces of hidden information.

[0147] For example, the display area includes a gaze area 301; the gaze area 301 corresponds to hidden windows 302 and 303. Hidden windows 302 and 303 are both hidden off-screen, and their hiding positions are different; for example, hidden window 302 is located in the outer area on the left side of the screen, and hidden window 303 is located in the outer area on the right side of the screen; the electronic device does not display hidden windows 302 and 303 at this time.

[0148] To facilitate categorization and organization, different hidden windows can be set with different modalities of hidden information. For example, hidden window 302 may include application icons such as game application icon 304 and email application icon 305; hidden window 303 may include note card 306, for example. Optionally, different modalities of hidden information can also be placed in the same hidden window, and this embodiment of the application does not limit this.

[0149] Electronic devices can bring up different hidden windows in the gaze area based on different gestures. For example, in Figure 3, when the electronic device detects a user's gesture of pulling to the right, it can display hidden information in hidden window 302; when the electronic device detects a user's gesture of pulling to the left, it can display hidden information in hidden window 303. This will be explained in detail later with reference to Figures 4 and 11, and will not be elaborated here.

[0150] Based on the embodiment shown in Figure 3, the following description uses the application icon as an example to illustrate the scenario of viewing hidden information, in conjunction with Figures 4 and 5. Figure 4 shows the scenario of bringing up the hidden window, and Figure 5 shows the scenario of using the hidden information within the hidden window.

[0151] Taking the example of an electronic device bringing up a hidden window through gaze and gesture operation, the scenario of bringing up a hidden window can be seen in Figure 4:

[0152] The electronic device can display a desktop, as shown in Figure 4a; the desktop may include one or more application icons, which may be application icons with hidden protection not enabled; the user can view the content of these applications in a conventional manner.

[0153] When a user wants to view hidden information, the user can gaze at the gaze area; as shown in the scenario in Figure 4b, the user's line of sight is located in the gaze area 301; the front-facing camera of the electronic device can detect that the user's line of sight is within the gaze area 301.

[0154] When a user's gaze is detected, the electronic device can monitor the user's gestures. The user can control the electronic device to display hidden information in a hidden window within the display area using gestures. For example, in the interface shown in Figure 4c, the user performs a swipe gesture to the right; in response to this gesture, the electronic device displays the interface shown in Figure 4d. The interface shown in Figure 4d may include an operable hidden window 402; the operable hidden window can be a hidden window displayed on the screen; the user can perform operations to add and / or delete hidden information in the operable hidden window to manage the hidden information in the hidden window in real time.

[0155] The operable hidden window 402 can be the hidden window 302 displayed on the screen; the hidden information in the operable hidden window 402 is the same as the hidden information in the hidden window 302 in Figure 3. It is understood that the hidden information in the operable hidden window 402 is related to the swiping direction of the gesture and the position of the hidden window. For example, in Figure 3, the hidden window 302 is located on the left side of the display area. When a rightward swipe is performed in the interface shown in Figure 4c, the hidden window 302 can move to the right into the display area; thus, the hidden information in the hidden window 302 is displayed in the operable hidden window 402.

[0156] For example, in Figure 3, the hidden window 303 is located in the outer area on the right side of the screen. When a leftward drag is performed in the interface shown in Figure 4c, the hidden window 303 can move to the left into the display area; thus, the hidden information in the hidden window 303 (not shown in the figure) is displayed in the operable hidden window 402.

[0157] It should be noted that this embodiment uses the example of displaying an operable hidden window on the top layer of the desktop to illustrate the process of bringing up the hidden window. In actual operation, the interface below the operable hidden window can also be other interfaces. This embodiment does not limit the applicable scenarios for the hiding function.

[0158] It should be noted that this embodiment of the application uses the example of the electronic device starting to recognize the user's gesture after the user gazes at the gaze area to illustrate the process of bringing up the hidden window; in actual operation, the electronic device can also move the hidden window hidden off-screen to the screen through other operations. This embodiment of the application does not limit this.

[0159] Thus, electronic devices can retrieve hidden information off-screen based on user gaze and gestures, making it easier to view the hidden information later.

[0160] Optionally, when the user's gaze is detected within the gaze area, the electronic device may display the corresponding gaze area. For example, the electronic device may display the interface shown in Figure 4c; the interface shown in Figure 4c may be, for example, a desktop, on which the gaze area 301 may be displayed. Displaying the gaze area may include, for example, displaying the outer border of the gaze area, such as the outer border 401 of the gaze area 301; setting the transparency of the gaze area; changing the color of the gaze area; and / or adding a mask to the gaze area, etc. The electronic device can remind the user that the function to view hidden information has been activated by displaying the gaze area, and the user can use gestures to bring up different hidden windows.

[0161] In other embodiments, when the user's gaze is detected to be within the gaze area, the electronic device may not display the gaze area, meaning the user is unaware of the gaze area. This application does not limit whether the gaze area is displayed on the interface, or the specific implementation of the gaze area when it is displayed.

[0162] Optionally, to reduce the power consumption of the camera in the electronic device, the electronic device can use a low-power camera to monitor the range of the user's gaze; and, after the above-mentioned hiding function is enabled, the electronic device can display hidden information in the corresponding hidden window based on the user's gaze and gesture operation; when the hiding function is not enabled, the electronic device may not monitor the range of the user's gaze.

[0163] For example, the toggle control for the hidden function can be located in the settings application or in the quick settings control in the control center; this application embodiment does not impose any limitations on this. When the user triggers the toggle control for the hidden function in the settings application or control center, the electronic device can switch the on and off states of the toggle control. For example, when the toggle control is in the on state, the electronic device can use a camera to monitor the user's gaze range in real time; when the toggle control is in the off state, the electronic device can not use a camera to monitor the user's gaze range in real time.

[0164] Optionally, in this embodiment, a larger gaze area can reduce computational power consumption and camera power consumption. It is understood that the accuracy of an electronic device in recognizing the user's gaze range is positively correlated with camera capabilities and processing power. For example, when the gaze area is small, the electronic device supports higher accuracy in recognizing the user's gaze range, requiring higher-quality user images, stronger processing power, and more accurate algorithms, thus increasing overall power consumption. Therefore, in this embodiment, the electronic device can set a larger gaze area; for example, the gaze area can be 1 / 4 of the screen. Optionally, other gaze areas can also be set in this embodiment; there are no limitations on this.

[0165] Optionally, to enhance the security of hidden information, user identity can be verified before displaying the hidden window. For example, in the interface shown in Figure 4c, after the electronic device receives and recognizes the user's gesture, it can capture the current user's facial information using a camera. The electronic device compares the current user's facial information with the facial information of a preset user. If the similarity is higher than a similarity threshold, face unlock is successful, and the electronic device can display the operable hidden window 402 in the interface shown in Figure 4d. If face unlock fails, the electronic device discards the event corresponding to the gesture.

[0166] In some embodiments, to improve the smoothness of bringing up the hidden window and enhance the ease of operation, the electronic device can make the face unlock process invisible to the user, meaning the user is unaware of the face unlock process. In other embodiments, after displaying the interface shown in Figure 4c and receiving a gesture operation, the electronic device can also display the face unlock process; this enhances the user experience and increases the user's trust in the security of the hidden function.

[0167] It should be noted that this application embodiment uses the verification of user identity after recognizing a gesture operation as an example to illustrate the face recognition process. In actual operation, the electronic device can also verify the user's facial information when the user's line of sight is within the gaze hotspot, and only begin monitoring the user's gesture operation after successful verification. This application embodiment does not limit the order of face recognition.

[0168] The process of a user viewing hidden information using an electronic device can be seen in Figure 5:

[0169] After the hidden window is brought up, the electronic device can display hidden information. For example, in the interface shown in Figure 5a, the electronic device can display an operable hidden window 402; the operable hidden window 402 includes a game application icon 304 and an email application icon 305.

[0170] Taking an email application as an example, when a trigger operation is received for the email application icon 305, the electronic device can display the email application interface, as shown in Figure 5b. In the interface shown in Figure 5b, the electronic device can display content from the email application, such as one or more email messages in the inbox; the user can view these email messages within the email application interface.

[0171] After viewing the email, the user can exit the email application from their electronic device. For example, in the interface shown in Figure 5b, the electronic device receives a swipe-up gesture from the bottom of the screen; in response to this gesture, the electronic device moves the email application to the background, and the device can display a desktop, such as shown in Figure 5c.

[0172] In some embodiments, a user may use the multitasking interface to view applications running in the background, or to return to or exit applications. For example, in the interface shown in Figure 5c, the electronic device receives a swipe-up gesture from the bottom of the screen and pauses; in response to this gesture, the electronic device can enter the multitasking interface shown in Figure 5d. In the interface shown in Figure 5d, the electronic device may display cards for one or more applications running in the background; for example, calendar application card 501 and email application card 502.

[0173] Taking a scenario where the hidden information includes an email app icon but excludes a calendar app icon, the electronic device can display content from the calendar app in calendar app card 501. For example, calendar app card 501 could be a screenshot of the calendar app interface before the electronic device runs the calendar app in the background. Since the electronic device needs to hide and protect information from the email app, it can blur email app card 502 when displaying it to conceal the information from the email app. Optionally, the electronic device can also blur the email app icon 503 simultaneously to hide the email app. This improves the security of hidden information in a multitasking interface.

[0174] In the interface shown as d in Figure 5, when a trigger operation is received for the email application card 502, the electronic device can return to the email application interface shown as b in Figure 5. Optionally, to improve the security of hidden information when switching from the multitasking interface back to the application interface, facial recognition can be set during the switching process. For example, in response to a trigger operation for the email application card 502, the electronic device can collect the user's facial information. If the current user's facial information matches the facial information of a preset user, the electronic device returns to the interface shown as b in Figure 5. If the current user's facial information does not match the facial information of a preset user, the electronic device may not respond to the trigger operation. The user is unaware of the facial recognition process.

[0175] In the interface shown in Figure 5d, when a swipe-up operation is received for the email application card 502, the electronic device can exit the email application. The interface shown in Figure 5d may also include a delete control 504; when the electronic device receives a trigger operation for the delete control 504, the electronic device can clear all background applications.

[0176] Optionally, the applications hidden in the multitasking interface may not be displayed. For example, after entering the multitasking interface, the electronic device does not display the email application card 502 and the email application icon 503 (not shown in the figure). This application embodiment does not limit this.

[0177] Thus, when viewing hidden information using an operable hidden window, the security of the hidden information is enhanced through the hidden window and facial recognition; facial recognition can also be used to protect the hidden information when exiting or returning to the background; thereby improving information security throughout the entire process of viewing hidden information.

[0178] The above embodiments, in conjunction with Figures 4 and 5, illustrate the process of using hidden information; the following, in conjunction with Figure 6, illustrates the process of adding hidden information to a hidden window. As shown in Figure 6:

[0179] After the user executes the process of bringing up the hidden window as shown in Figure 4, the electronic device can display the interface shown in Figure 6a. In the interface shown in Figure 6a, the electronic device can display an operable hidden window 402; the operable hidden window 402 includes a game application icon 304 and an email application icon 305. The operable hidden window 402 is located on the upper layer of the desktop, which may include map application icons, social application icons, file management application icons, clock application icons, settings application icons, calculator application icons, and music application icons 601, etc. At this time, the electronic device sets hidden protection for the applications in the operable hidden window 402, but does not set hidden protection for the applications on the desktop.

[0180] If a user wants to hide a music application, the user can use an electronic device to add the music application icon 601 to an operable hidden window 402.

[0181] In some embodiments, the electronic device can add application icons to an operable hidden window based on a drag-and-drop operation. For example, in the interface shown in Figure 6a, the electronic device receives a long-press operation on the music application icon 601; in response to the long-press operation, the electronic device sets the music application icon 601 to a movable state; while a touch object (e.g., a user's finger) continues to act on the music application icon 601, the music application icon 601 can move accordingly following the movement of the touch object. For example, in the interface shown in Figure 6b, the user drags the music application icon 601 to the operable hidden window 402 based on a touch object.

[0182] It should be noted that, in this embodiment, the drag-and-drop operation can be the method described above, where an icon is long-pressed to select it, and then dragged to move it. This method can adopt the conventional method of users adjusting icon positions on the desktop, which is more in line with user habits. Optionally, the drag-and-drop operation in this embodiment can also be the method of clicking the icon and dragging it to move it, omitting the long-press process and simplifying user operation. This embodiment does not limit this.

[0183] In one possible implementation, after dragging the music application icon 601 to the operable hidden window 402, the touch object can leave the screen of the electronic device (e.g., the user lifts their finger), and the electronic device can add the music application icon in the operable hidden window 402 according to the time when the icon was added. For example, after the user releases their finger, the electronic device can automatically place the newly added application icon behind the most recently added application icon; for example, in the interface shown in Figure 6c, the music application icon 601 is located behind the email application icon 305.

[0184] In another possible implementation, after dragging the music app icon 601 to the operable hidden window 402, the touch object can leave the screen of the electronic device, and the electronic device can add the music app icon at the lifted position. For example, after the scenario shown in Figure 6b, the touch object can continue to act on the music app icon 601 until it is dragged to a position behind the email app icon 305. Then the touch object leaves the screen, and the music app icon 601 is added behind the email app icon 305, as shown in the interface in Figure 6c.

[0185] Optionally, users may not want others to see some application icons and content within the applications while using the hiding function provided in this application embodiment. To address this, in this application embodiment, the electronic device can add the application icon to the hidden window and then unshow the application icon on the desktop to improve the privacy of the application icon. For example, in the interface shown in Figure 6c, the electronic device displays the music application icon 601 in the operable hidden window 402 and unshows the music application icon 601 on the desktop. For example, the dashed box 602 represents the original position of the music application icon 601 on the desktop; in this case, the dashed box 602 does not include the music application icon 601.

[0186] After adding the application icon, the user may use the application immediately; in this case, the user can view the hidden information using the scenario shown in Figure 5. Alternatively, after adding the application icon, the user may not use the application temporarily; in this case, the user can use gestures to control the electronic device to collapse the operable hidden window.

[0187] The process of collapsing an operable hidden window can be illustrated as follows: In the interface shown in Figure 6c, when a leftward drag operation is received, the electronic device can collapse the operable hidden window 402 and display the desktop as shown in Figure 6d. In the interface shown in Figure 6d, the operable hidden window 402 is not displayed, nor is any hidden information (e.g., the music application icon 601).

[0188] The collapsible, operable hidden window can be referenced as hidden window 302 in Figure 3; the position of hidden window 302 corresponds to the gesture operation when collapsing the operable hidden window. For example, if a leftward drag gesture is performed in the interface shown in Figure 6c, the operable hidden window 402 will be collapsed to the left side of the screen, as in the position of hidden window 302. As another example, if a rightward drag gesture is performed in the interface shown in Figure 6c, the operable hidden window 402 will be collapsed to the right side of the screen (not shown in the figure).

[0189] It is understandable that gestures for bringing up and collapsing operable hidden windows can be operations in opposite directions. For example, an electronic device might bring up a hidden window hidden off the left side of the screen by swiping to the right, and collapse the hidden window off the left side of the screen by swiping to the left. Similarly, an electronic device might bring up a hidden window hidden off the right side of the screen by swiping to the left, and collapse the hidden window off the right side of the screen by swiping to the right.

[0190] After adding the email application icon to the hidden window, the electronic device can view the hidden information as shown in Figures 4 and 5.

[0191] It should be noted that the embodiments of this application do not limit the timing of hiding information on the desktop. In some embodiments, in the interface shown in Figure 6c, after dragging the music application icon 601 into the hidden window 402, the electronic device can de-display the music application icon on the lower desktop. That is to say, the electronic device can de-display hidden information in, for example, the interface shown in Figure 6c.

[0192] In other embodiments, after the music application icon 601 is dragged into the hidden window 402, the electronic device may display the music application icon for a period of time. During this time, the user can access the music application either through the icon in the hidden window or through the icon on the desktop. When the user is not using or has finished using the music application, the electronic device closes the hidden window 402 and de-displays the music application icon on the desktop, as shown in Figure 6d. In other words, the electronic device can display the hidden message in, for example, the interface shown in Figure 6c, and de-display the hidden message in the interface shown in Figure 6d.

[0193] It should be understood that users can view hidden information in a hidden window through an interface such as shown in Figure 6c; during this process, the user is a pre-verified user who has been authenticated; that is, whether the hidden information is displayed in the interface shown in Figure 6c or not, it will not cause the hidden information to be leaked. However, after the hidden window is collapsed, the electronic device displays the desktop. At this time, the user viewing the electronic device may be another user, posing a risk of information leakage. Therefore, in this embodiment of the application, before or when the hidden window is collapsed, the electronic device cancels the display of the hidden information on the desktop, which can prevent others from viewing the hidden information on the desktop, thereby improving the security of the hidden information.

[0194] In this way, electronic devices can add hidden information to a hidden window and then collapse the hidden window, thereby achieving the purpose of hiding the hidden information and improving its security.

[0195] In this embodiment of the application, a single gaze region may correspond to multiple hidden windows; the electronic device can use different gesture operations to bring up different hidden windows of the same gaze region. For example, Figure 7 shows a schematic diagram of a single gaze region corresponding to multiple hidden windows provided in this embodiment of the application, as shown in Figure 7:

[0196] Taking a single gaze area corresponding to four hidden windows as an example, in Figure 7, the gaze area 301 corresponds to four hidden windows outside the screen, and each hidden window contains different hidden information. For example, hidden window 302 can be located in the outer area on the left side of the screen; hidden window 303 can be located in the outer area on the right side of the screen; hidden window 701 can be located in the outer area at the top of the screen; and hidden window 702 can be located in the outer area at the bottom of the screen.

[0197] In this embodiment, users can set different categories of hidden information in different hidden windows according to their usage habits, so as to facilitate quick retrieval of hidden information later. For example, hidden window 302 contains entertainment and leisure-related hidden information, such as game application icons and e-book application icons; hidden window 701 contains payment and shopping-related hidden information, such as payment application icons and shopping application icons; hidden window 702 contains communication-related hidden information, such as email application icons and social application icons; and hidden window 303 contains note-taking-related hidden information, such as note-taking application icons.

[0198] Specifically, referring to Figure 7, if the electronic device receives a rightward swipe, the electronic device displays the game application icon and e-book application icon in hidden window 302 within the operable hidden window. If the electronic device receives a leftward swipe, the electronic device displays the note-taking application icon in hidden window 303 within the operable hidden window. If the electronic device receives a downward swipe, the electronic device displays the payment application icon and shopping application icon in hidden window 701 within the operable hidden window. If the electronic device receives an upward swipe, the electronic device displays the email application icon and social application icon in hidden window 702 within the operable hidden window.

[0199] It is understood that gesture operations may include swiping up, swiping down, swiping left, and swiping right. This embodiment uses a single gaze region corresponding to four hidden windows as an example to illustrate the correspondence between gaze regions and hidden windows. When the electronic device has high accuracy in recognizing gesture operations, gesture operations may also include swiping up to the left, swiping down to the left, swiping up to the right, and swiping down to the right, etc., and a single gaze region may correspond to more hidden windows. This embodiment does not limit the number of hidden windows corresponding to a single gaze region.

[0200] In this way, users can place different types of hidden information in different hidden windows. Subsequently, users can pull up the corresponding hidden window according to the category of hidden information and quickly find the hidden information, thereby improving the efficiency of hidden information retrieval.

[0201] Figure 7 illustrates the process of classifying and hiding hidden information by using a single gaze region corresponding to multiple hidden windows as an example. In addition, embodiments of this application can also set multiple gaze regions, with each gaze region corresponding to one hidden window, to achieve the effect of placing different types and / or different modal hidden information in different hidden windows.

[0202] For example, Figure 8 shows a schematic diagram of multiple gaze regions corresponding to multiple hidden windows provided in an embodiment of this application, as shown in Figure 8:

[0203] Taking an electronic device whose display area can be divided into four viewing areas, and whose corresponding hidden window is hidden in the outer area on the left side of the screen as an example, the electronic device can bring up the hidden window by dragging to the right. In Figure 8, the electronic device may include viewing areas 801, 802, 803, and 804. These four viewing areas do not overlap; for example, viewing area 801 is located in the upper left part of the display area; viewing area 802 is located in the upper right part of the display area; viewing area 803 is located in the lower left part of the display area; and viewing area 804 is located in the lower right part of the display area.

[0204] Hidden windows 805, 806, 807, and 808 are hidden in the outer area on the left side of the screen. The gaze area 801 corresponds to hidden window 805, the gaze area 802 corresponds to hidden window 806, the gaze area 803 corresponds to hidden window 807, and the gaze area 804 corresponds to hidden window 808.

[0205] Specifically, the process of bringing up the hidden window 805 can be as follows: When the user's line of sight is within the gaze area 801, the electronic device can recognize that the user is looking at the gaze area 801 and begin monitoring the user's gesture operations; the user can perform a rightward drag operation, and in response to this operation, the electronic device can display an operable hidden window, and display the game application icon and e-book application icon in the hidden window 805. The process of displaying the operable hidden window can be seen in the scenario shown in Figure 4d, and will not be described in detail in this embodiment.

[0206] Optionally, if the user's gaze is detected to be within the gaze area 801, the electronic device may display the gaze area 801, but not the gaze areas 802, 803, and 804; the effect of displaying the gaze areas can be referred to the relevant description in Figure 3, which will not be repeated here.

[0207] The electronic device displays gaze area 801 but not gaze areas 802, 803, and 804. This can be understood as follows: if a user continuously gazes at one gaze area for a period of time, that gaze area becomes active, and the user can use the gaze area and gestures to bring up a hidden window. However, if the user gazes at multiple gaze areas within a period of time, this behavior may be due to the user routinely browsing content on the screen, rather than intending to activate a gaze area. Therefore, to reduce false triggering of the electronic device, in this embodiment, only one gaze area is active for a period of time, i.e., one gaze area is displayed, and other gaze areas are not displayed.

[0208] Optionally, if the user's gaze is detected within the gaze area 801, the electronic device may not display gaze area 801, nor gaze areas 802, 803, and 804. It should be understood that although the user is unaware of gaze area 801 in the interface, gaze area 801 is currently active, while other gaze areas are inactive. Thus, upon receiving subsequent user gestures, the electronic device can accordingly bring up the hidden window 805 corresponding to gaze area 801.

[0209] The process of bringing up the hidden window 806 can be as follows: When the user's gaze is within the eye-gaze area 802, the electronic device can recognize that the user is looking at the eye-gaze area 802 and activate the eye-gaze area 802 (the electronic device may or may not display the eye-gaze area 802, there is no restriction on this). Afterwards, the user can perform a drag-to-the-right operation. In response to this operation, the electronic device can display an operable hidden window, and within the operable hidden window, the email application icon and social application icon in the hidden window 806 will be displayed.

[0210] The process of bringing up the hidden window 807 can be as follows: When the user's gaze is within the gaze area 803, the electronic device can recognize that the user is looking at the gaze area 803 and activate the gaze area 803. Then, the user can perform a drag-to-the-right operation. In response to this operation, the electronic device can display an operable hidden window and show the notes application icon in the hidden window 807.

[0211] The process of bringing up the hidden window 808 can be as follows: When the user's line of sight is within the gaze area 804, the electronic device can recognize that the user is looking at the gaze area 804 and activate the gaze area 804. Then, the user can perform a drag-to-the-right operation. In response to this operation, the electronic device can display an operable hidden window, and within the operable hidden window, display the payment application icon and the shopping application icon in the hidden window 808.

[0212] Understandably, to reduce the complexity of user gesture operations, in this embodiment, the hidden windows can all be placed on one side outside the screen. For example, hidden windows 805, 806, 807, and 808 in Figure 8 are all located on the left side outside the screen. In this way, when using hidden windows, users only need to gaze at different viewing areas and use the same gesture operation to bring up the hidden window corresponding to the viewing area, reducing the difficulty for users to find hidden windows.

[0213] In this way, electronic devices can set up corresponding hidden windows in different viewing areas. Different types of hidden information can be placed in different hidden windows. Subsequently, users can pull up the corresponding hidden window according to the category of hidden information and quickly find the hidden information, thereby improving the efficiency of hidden information retrieval.

[0214] Optionally, in this application embodiment, the embodiments shown in FIG7 and FIG8 can be combined. For example, the display area of ​​an electronic device can be divided into multiple gaze areas, and each gaze area corresponds to multiple hidden windows. After gazing at any gaze area, the user can bring up multiple hidden windows based on different gesture operations. This application embodiment does not limit this.

[0215] The above embodiments use the hiding and use of application icons as an example to illustrate the information hiding method provided in this application. In Figure 3, the electronic device can also hide information in different modalities; for example, the hidden information may also include cards. The process of hiding service cards in this application embodiment will be described below with reference to Figure 9.

[0216] For example, in Figure 3, the electronic device can hide the service card off-screen and not display the service card. For instance, a hidden window 303 is provided in the outer area on the right side of the screen in Figure 3, and the hidden window 303 includes a note card 306.

[0217] Based on the embodiment shown in Figure 3, the electronic device can activate the gaze area based on the user's line of sight; the interfaces shown in Figure 9a to Figure 9c can be referred to in the relevant descriptions of the interfaces shown in Figure 4a to Figure 4c, which will not be repeated here.

[0218] After activating the gaze area, the user can perform a gesture to cause the electronic device to display hidden information in a hidden window within the display area. For example, the user performs a swipe gesture to the left; in response to this gesture, the electronic device displays the interface shown in Figure 9d. The interface shown in Figure 9d may include an operable hidden window 901.

[0219] The hidden information in the operable hidden window 901 is the same as the hidden information in the hidden window 303 in Figure 3. It can be understood that the hidden information in the operable hidden window 901 is related to the swipe direction of the gesture and the position of the hidden window. For example, in Figure 3, the hidden window 303 is located on the right side of the display area. When a leftward swipe is performed in the interface shown in Figure 9c, the hidden window 303 can move to the left into the display area; thus, the hidden information in the hidden window 303 is displayed in the operable hidden window 901.

[0220] Thus, electronic devices can retrieve hidden information off-screen based on user gaze and gestures, facilitating subsequent viewing of the hidden information. At the same time, the hidden information can be service cards, enriching the modality of hidden information, increasing the usage scenarios of the hidden function, and improving the user experience.

[0221] In this embodiment, the operable hidden window may obscure some application icons and / or service cards on the desktop; the electronic device can set the position of the operable hidden window to reduce the obstruction of icons. The process of moving the operable hidden window provided in this embodiment is described below with reference to Figure 10, as shown in Figure 10:

[0222] In the interface shown in Figure 10a, the electronic device can display an operable hidden window 901 on the top layer of the desktop. The operable hidden window 901 includes a note card 306.

[0223] For example, if a user wants to hide a trip card, the electronic device may include multiple desktops. The user can first find the desktop that includes the trip card among the multiple desktops; then add the trip card to the operable hidden window 901.

[0224] For example, in the interface shown in Figure 10a, the electronic device can also display a page indicator 1001 on the desktop, which can be used to indicate the position of the current desktop among multiple desktops. For example, if the dot in the page indicator 1001 that indicates the first desktop is highlighted, then the page indicator 1001 indicates that the current desktop is the first desktop.

[0225] When a rightward swipe is received on the desktop, the electronic device can switch desktops. For example, in the interface shown in Figure 10b, the electronic device can display the desktop and an operable hidden window 901; the desktop may include a page indicator 1002, which indicates that the current desktop is the second desktop. This allows desktop switching to be performed while the operable hidden window is displayed.

[0226] Understandably, to reduce overlap between icons in the operable hidden window and icons on the desktop, the operable hidden window can be set to opaque; that is, after the operable hidden window is brought up, it will obscure part of the desktop content. For example, in the interface shown in Figure 10b, the operable hidden window 901 is located in the upper half of the screen, which can be the initial position of the operable hidden window 901. Furthermore, the desktop may include a schedule card 1003, which can be located in the upper half of the desktop; the electronic device displays part of the desktop in the lower half of the screen, while the schedule card 1003 in the upper half of the desktop is obscured by the operable hidden window 901. In this case, the user can adjust the position of the operable hidden window to view the icons in the upper half of the desktop.

[0227] For example, in the interface shown in Figure 10b, the electronic device receives a long press operation on the operable hidden window 901; in response to this operation, the electronic device sets the operable hidden window 901 to a movable state. As the touch object continues to act on the operable hidden window 901, the operable hidden window 901 can move accordingly, following the movement of the touch object. For example, in the interface shown in Figure 10c, the user drags the lower half of the operable hidden window 901 based on the touch object.

[0228] After dragging the operable hidden window 901 to a position that does not obstruct the trip card 1003, the touch object can leave the screen of the electronic device, and the electronic device can display the trip card 1003 and the operable hidden window 901 at the position where the touch object leaves the screen; as shown in the interface in Figure 10c.

[0229] Optionally, in this embodiment, the electronic device can also adjust the size of the operable hidden window; for example, in the interface shown in Figure 10b, when a two-finger pinch operation is received in the operable hidden window 901, the electronic device can display the effect of shrinking the operable hidden window 901. Alternatively, when a two-finger spread operation is received in the operable hidden window 901, the electronic device can display the effect of enlarging the operable hidden window 901 (not shown in the figure).

[0230] At this point, electronic devices can adjust the position of the operable hidden window to display more icon information on the desktop, making it easier to add icons to the operable hidden window later.

[0231] The process of adding a service card in an operable hidden window in this embodiment of the application will be described below with reference to Figure 11, as shown in Figure 11:

[0232] After the position of the operable hidden window 901 is moved, the electronic device can display the interface shown in Figure 11a, which may include the operable hidden window 901 and the desktop; the operable hidden window 901 includes a note card 306, and the desktop may include a schedule card 1003, a calendar application icon, and a gallery application icon, etc.

[0233] In some embodiments, the electronic device can add cards to an operable hidden window based on a drag-and-drop operation. For example, in the interface shown in Figure 11a, the electronic device receives a long-press operation on the trip card 1003; in response to the long-press operation, the electronic device sets the trip card 1003 to a movable state; while a touch object (e.g., a user's finger) continues to act on the trip card 1003, the trip card 1003 can move accordingly following the movement position of the touch object. For example, in the interface shown in Figure 11b, the user drags the trip card 1003 to the operable hidden window 1003 based on a touch object.

[0234] Optionally, users may not want others to see certain service cards and their corresponding content while using the hiding function provided in this application embodiment. In this regard, in this application embodiment, the electronic device can add a service card to the hidden window and then undisplay the service card on the desktop to improve the privacy of the service card. For example, in the interface shown in Figure 11c, the electronic device displays the trip card 1003 in the operable hidden window 901 and undisplays the trip card 1003 on the desktop. For example, the dashed box 1101 represents the original position of the trip card 1003 on the desktop; at this time, the dashed box 1101 does not include the trip card 1003.

[0235] After adding a service card, the user may use it immediately. In this case, the user can click on the service card to view hidden information. This process can be referred to the relevant description in the embodiment shown in Figure 5, which will not be repeated here. Alternatively, after adding a service card, the user may not use it temporarily. In this case, the user can use gestures to control the electronic device to collapse the operable hidden window.

[0236] The process of collapsing an operable hidden window can be illustrated as follows: In the interface shown in Figure 11c, when a rightward drag operation is received, the electronic device can collapse the operable hidden window 901 and display the desktop shown in Figure 11d. In the interface shown in Figure 11d, the operable hidden window 901 is not displayed, nor is any hidden information (e.g., trip card 1003).

[0237] The operable hidden window after being collapsed can be seen in hidden window 303 in Figure 3; the position of hidden window 303 corresponds to the gesture operation when collapsing the operable hidden window. For example, if a right-drag gesture is performed on the interface shown in Figure 11c, the operable hidden window 901 will be collapsed to the right side of the screen, as in the position of hidden window 303.

[0238] After the trip card 1003 is added to the hidden window, the electronic device can view the hidden information as shown in Figures 9 and 5, for example.

[0239] Thus, electronic devices can add hidden information to a hidden window and then collapse the hidden window, thereby achieving the purpose of hiding the hidden information and improving its security. At the same time, electronic devices can hide information in multiple modalities, increasing the usage scenarios of the hiding function and improving the user experience.

[0240] In this embodiment, the hidden information can also be other modalities, such as application windows and shortcut tools. The process of hiding application windows will be described below with reference to Figures 12 and 13; and the process of hiding shortcut tools will be described with reference to Figures 14 and 19.

[0241] For example, taking hidden information as an application window, Figure 12 illustrates the process of calling up an operable hidden window in an embodiment of this application, as shown in Figure 12:

[0242] After launching an application, an electronic device can display the application interface in full screen. For example, after launching a social application, an electronic device can display the interface shown in Figure 12a in full screen. This interface is the social application interface, which can display user information such as contacts and chat messages.

[0243] In this embodiment, the hidden information can be an application window. The process of adding hidden information can be referred to the embodiments shown in Figure 6 and Figure 11. Users can drag and drop the hidden information into an operable hidden window. However, full-screen application windows do not support dragging; here, the electronic device can first switch the application window from a full-screen window to a floating window, thereby facilitating the movement of the application window.

[0244] After switching the application's full-screen window to a floating window, the electronic device can display the interface shown in Figure 12b. This interface may include a floating window 1201 for social applications; the content displayed in the floating window 1201 of the social applications is the same as the content in the interface shown in Figure 12a.

[0245] In this embodiment of the application, the electronic device can bring up the floating window of the social application in a variety of ways.

[0246] In one possible implementation, upon receiving a trigger operation of swiping down from the top of the screen, the electronic device can display a control center interface; the control center interface may include a floating window control. When a trigger operation is received for the floating window control, the electronic device can switch the full-screen window shown in Figure 12a to the floating window shown in Figure 12b.

[0247] In another possible implementation, upon receiving a trigger operation of swiping up from the bottom of the screen, the electronic device can display a multitasking interface, which can be referred to as the interface shown in Figure 5d. The multitasking interface may include a floating window control, which can be referred to as the floating window control 505 in the interface shown in Figure 5d. In the multitasking interface, when a trigger operation is received for the floating window control corresponding to the social application, the electronic device can switch the full-screen window shown in Figure 12a to the floating window shown in Figure 12b.

[0248] In another possible implementation, upon receiving a trigger action of swiping from the left to the right of the screen, the electronic device can display a sidebar, which may include social application icons. When a trigger action is received for a social application icon, the electronic device can display a floating window 1201 of the social application, as shown in interface b of Figure 12.

[0249] In another possible implementation, the electronic device can also switch the application's full-screen window to a floating window based on a specific gesture, or directly pull up the application's floating window. Examples of this application will not be listed individually.

[0250] After displaying the floating window of the social application, the user can gaze at the gaze area 1202 if they wish to bring up the hidden window. The electronic device can activate the gaze area when it detects that the user's gaze is within it. In some embodiments, the electronic device can display the outer border 1203 of the gaze area 1202, as shown in the interface shown in c of Figure 12; in other embodiments, the electronic device may not display the gaze area 1202.

[0251] After activating the gaze area 1202, the user can perform a gesture to bring up an operable hidden window on the electronic device. For example, the user performs a swipe gesture to the right; in response to this gesture, the electronic device displays the interface shown in Figure 12d. The interface shown in Figure 12d may include an operable hidden window 1204.

[0252] In some embodiments, the application's floating window is relatively large, which may lead to scenarios where, for example, the operable hidden window 1204 partially obscures the floating window 1201. The electronic device can adjust the size and position of the floating window to reduce the obstruction and facilitate subsequently dragging the floating window into the operable hidden window.

[0253] The process of adjusting the size of a floating window can be exemplified by, for instance, a bottom bar 1205 included in a floating window 1201 of a social application. When an operation to swipe upwards on the bottom bar is received, the electronic device can display an effect where the size of the floating window gradually shrinks as the touch object swipes upwards. When an operation to swipe downwards on the bottom bar is received, the electronic device can display an effect where the size of the floating window gradually enlarges as the touch object swipes downwards.

[0254] The process of adjusting the position of a floating window can be, for example, as shown by a top bar 1206 that may be included in a floating window 1201 of a social application. When a drag operation is received on the top bar, the electronic device can display the effect that the position of the floating window moves with the displacement of the touched object.

[0255] Optionally, the floating window 1201 of the social application may include a minimize control 1207. When a trigger operation is received on the minimize control 1207, the electronic device can shrink the floating window 1201 of the social application into a floating ball and retract the floating ball to the edge of the screen. Subsequently, the electronic device can drag the application's floating ball into an operable hidden window to add the application window as hidden information.

[0256] After the operable hidden window is brought up, the electronic device can add hidden information to the operable hidden window, such as an application window. The process of adding an application window to an operable hidden window in this embodiment of the application will be described below with reference to Figure 13. As shown in Figure 13:

[0257] In the interface shown in Figure 13a, the electronic device can display an operable hidden window 1204 and a floating window 1201 of the social application. The floating window of the social application may include a top bar. When a trigger operation is received on the top bar, the electronic device controls the floating window 1201 of the social application to move with the touched object. For example, if the touched object is continuously applied to the floating window 1201 of the social application and the floating window 1201 of the social application is dragged upwards, the floating window 1201 of the social application will move upwards accordingly, as shown in the interface shown in Figure 13b.

[0258] After dragging the floating window 1201 of the social application to the operable hidden window, the touch object can be removed from the touchscreen. In response to the user's lift-up operation, the electronic device can add the social application window 1301 to the operable hidden window 1204 and display the interface shown in Figure 13c. The content of the social application window 1301 is the same as the content of the floating window 1201 of the social application. Optionally, the electronic device can display a social application icon 1302 above the social application window 1301 to indicate to the user that the application window belongs to this application.

[0259] After adding an application window, the user may use it immediately; in this case, the user can refer to the scenario shown in Figure 5 to view the hidden information. Alternatively, after adding an application window, the user may not use it temporarily; in this case, the user can use gestures to control the electronic device to collapse the operable hidden window.

[0260] The process of collapsing the operable hidden window can be illustrated as follows: In the interface shown in Figure 13c, when a leftward drag operation is received, the electronic device can collapse the operable hidden window 1204 and display the desktop shown in Figure 13d. The interface shown in Figure 13d does not display the operable hidden window 1204 or the floating window 1201 of the social application.

[0261] In this embodiment, the application window is associated with the application program. After the electronic device hides the application window, it can simultaneously hide the application icon. For example, in the interfaces shown in Figure 13c and Figure 13d, the dashed box 1303 does not include the social application icon. Referring to the interface shown in Figure 13a, the electronic device displays the social application icon when the social application window is not hidden.

[0262] It is understandable that even after hiding the application window, if the application icon is not hidden, others can still view the hidden application window by clicking the application icon. To improve the security of the application window, this embodiment hides both the application window and the application icon.

[0263] Optionally, embodiments of this application may also employ other methods to add an application window to the operable hidden window. For example, after displaying the social application interface in full screen, an operable hidden window can be brought up through eye contact and gestures. Then, by long-pressing or other operations, the full-screen window of the social application can be switched to a floating window, and the floating window can be dragged to the operable hidden window to achieve the purpose of hiding the social application window. Embodiments of this application do not restrict the order in which the floating window and the operable hidden window are brought up.

[0264] The method provided in this application embodiment can quickly hide the application window in use. When the user is temporarily handling other tasks and does not want to discard the processing content in the current application window, the electronic device can use the hidden window to save the information in the application window, and the content of the application window before it was hidden can be quickly restored later.

[0265] Thus, electronic devices can add hidden information to a hidden window and then collapse the hidden window, thereby achieving the purpose of hiding the hidden information and improving its security. At the same time, the hidden information can be an application window, which can enrich the modality of the hidden information, increase the usage scenarios of the hiding function, and improve the user experience.

[0266] In this embodiment, the hidden information can also be a shortcut tool. Shortcut tools can be used to quickly access specific functions within an application. Shortcut tools can be icons on the negative one screen; for example, the interface of the negative one screen is shown in interface a of Figure 14. In the interface shown in Figure 14 a, the electronic device can display various types of shortcut tools, such as those for local services, smart travel, and entertainment / shopping. Taking shortcut tools in smart travel as an example, shortcut tools could be, for example, a ride-hailing service icon 1401, a train ticket service icon 1402, a flight ticket service icon 1403, and an accommodation service icon 1404, etc.

[0267] If a user wants to hide the ride-hailing service information, they can look at a gaze area, for example, in the upper left corner of the display area. When the electronic device detects that the user's gaze is on the gaze area, it can activate the gaze area, as shown in gaze area 1405 in the interface of Figure 14b.

[0268] After activating the gaze area 1405, the user can perform a gesture to bring up an operable hidden window on the electronic device. For example, the user performs a swipe gesture to the right; in response to this gesture, the electronic device displays the interface shown in Figure 14c. The interface shown in Figure 14c may include an operable hidden window 1406.

[0269] It is understood that after the hiding function is enabled, the electronic device can bring up the operable hidden window from any interface. For example, the electronic device can bring up the operable hidden window on the desktop based on the gaze area; the electronic device can bring up the operable hidden window in the application interface based on the gaze area; the electronic device can also bring up the operable hidden window on the negative one screen interface based on the gaze area. The embodiments of this application do not limit this.

[0270] The process of adding the shortcut tool icon to the operable hidden window in this embodiment of the application will be described below with reference to Figure 15, as shown in Figure 15:

[0271] In the interface shown in Figure 15a, the electronic device can display an operable hidden window 1406 and a negative one screen interface. The negative one screen interface may include a ride-hailing service icon 1401;

[0272] In some embodiments, the electronic device can add shortcut tools to an operable hidden window based on a drag-and-drop operation. For example, in the interface shown in Figure 15a, the electronic device receives a long-press operation on the ride-hailing service icon 1401; in response to the long-press operation, the electronic device sets the ride-hailing service icon 1401 to a movable state; while the touch object (e.g., the user's finger) continues to act on the ride-hailing service icon 1401, the ride-hailing service icon 1401 can move accordingly with the movement position of the touch object. For example, in the interface shown in Figure 15b, the user drags the ride-hailing service icon 1401 to an operable hidden window 1406 based on the touch object.

[0273] After dragging the ride-hailing service icon 1401 to the operable hidden window, the touch object can be removed from the touchscreen. In response to the user's lift-up operation, the electronic device can add the ride-hailing service icon 1401 to the operable hidden window 1406 and display the interface shown in Figure 15c.

[0274] After adding a shortcut, the user may use it immediately; in this case, the user can refer to the scenario shown in Figure 5 to view the hidden information. Alternatively, after adding a shortcut, the user may not use it temporarily; in this case, the user can use gestures to control the electronic device to collapse the operable hidden window.

[0275] The process of collapsing an operable hidden window can be illustrated as follows: In the interface shown in Figure 15c, when a leftward drag operation is received, the electronic device can collapse the operable hidden window 1406 and display the desktop as shown in Figure 15d. The operable hidden window 1406 is not displayed in the interface shown in Figure 13d.

[0276] Optionally, in this embodiment of the application, after adding the shortcut tool to an operable hidden window, the electronic device may not display the shortcut tool. For example, in the interface shown in Figure 15d, the electronic device no longer displays the ride-hailing service icon 1401 to improve the security of the shortcut tool.

[0277] Optionally, in this embodiment, after adding a shortcut tool to an operable hidden window, the electronic device can continue to display the corresponding application icon on the desktop. This enhances the security of the shortcut tool and avoids overly complex operations for users when using other functions of the application. For example, if the ride-hailing service icon 1401 belongs to a social application, the electronic device can continue to display the social application icon on the desktop.

[0278] It's understandable that shortcuts can be features within an application, and even if a feature is hidden, users may still need quick access to the main application. Removing application icons from the home screen might increase the user's workflow to access the main application. For example, if the ride-hailing service is hidden, and the social media app icon is also removed from the home screen, using the chat function would involve: first, bringing up the hidden, operable window; then, launching the ride-hailing service interface through the ride-hailing icon; and finally, exiting the ride-hailing interface and entering the chat interface—a rather cumbersome process. Therefore, it's better to keep the social media app icon on the home screen for users to quickly access other functions within the social media app.

[0279] After the shortcut tool is hidden, the user can quickly access it using an operable hidden window. The user can also find the shortcut tool within its application. After clicking the shortcut tool's icon, the electronic device can perform face detection on the user; if the detection is successful, the electronic device can launch the shortcut tool. This application's embodiments do not impose limitations on this.

[0280] Optionally, in this embodiment, after adding the shortcut tool to an operable hidden window, the electronic device can also simultaneously undisplay the corresponding application icon on the desktop to further enhance the security of the shortcut tool. For example, if the ride-hailing service icon 1401 belongs to a social application, the electronic device can undisplay the social application icon on the desktop. This embodiment does not impose any limitations on this.

[0281] Thus, electronic devices can add hidden information to a hidden window and then collapse the hidden window, thereby achieving the purpose of hiding the hidden information and improving its security. At the same time, the hidden information can serve as a shortcut tool, enriching the modality of the hidden information, increasing the usage scenarios of the hiding function, and improving the user experience.

[0282] Optionally, in this embodiment, the implementation of the present application is described using the example of bringing up an operable hidden window through gaze and gesture operation. The scheme of bringing up an operable hidden window based on gesture operation in this embodiment can also be implemented in other ways. For example, after the user gazes at the gaze area, the electronic device can activate the gaze area and display one or more controls, which can be used to bring up the corresponding hidden window. Figure 16 illustrates the process of bringing up a hidden window through a control in this embodiment, as shown in Figure 16:

[0283] The electronic device can display a regular desktop. When the user is looking at the gaze area, the electronic device can collect and verify the current user's facial information. After successful face unlock, the electronic device can display the gaze area 1601 and controls for one or more hidden windows, as shown in interface a of Figure 16; the controls for the one or more hidden windows can be, for example, control A 1602 and control B 1603, with each control corresponding to a hidden window, for example: control A 1602 corresponds to hidden window A 1604, and control B 1603 corresponds to hidden window B 1605.

[0284] Electronic devices can bring up corresponding hidden windows through controls within the hidden windows. For example, when a trigger operation is received for control A 1602, the electronic device can bring up the operable hidden window A 1606. As another example, when a trigger operation is received for control B 1603, the electronic device can bring up the operable hidden window B (not shown in the figure).

[0285] Optionally, this application embodiment does not limit the position, size, shape, or tooltip text of the controls in the hidden window. Other methods can also be used to bring up the operable hidden window, which will not be listed here.

[0286] The above embodiments illustrate the information hiding method provided in this application. However, in some scenarios, users may want to restore the hidden information to normal information after using it for a period of time. The following uses an application icon as an example to illustrate the process of deleting hidden information in a hidden window, in conjunction with Figure 17. As shown in Figure 17:

[0287] In one possible implementation, the electronic device can delete hidden information based on a drag-and-drop operation. For example, after bringing up an operable hidden window, the electronic device can display the interface shown in Figure 17a, where the operable hidden window 1701 includes a game application icon 1702 and an email application icon 1703. When a long-press operation is received on the email application icon 1703, the electronic device can set the email application icon 1703 to an operable state. The touch object continues to act on the email application icon 1703, and the touch object moves on the screen; correspondingly, the email application icon 1703 moves along with the touch object, as shown in the interface shown in Figure 17b.

[0288] Optionally, after dragging the email application icon 1703 out of the operable hidden window 1701, the touch object leaves the touch screen, and the electronic device can add the email application icon 1703 to the desktop, as shown in the interface of Figure 17d. The position of the email application icon 1703 on the desktop can be its initial position before being added to the hidden window; the position can also be an empty space on the current desktop or an empty space on another desktop. This embodiment does not impose any limitations on this.

[0289] Optionally, after dragging the email application icon 1703 out of the operable hidden window 1701 and dragging the email application icon 1703 to the target location, the electronic device can display the email application icon 1703 at the target location on the desktop, as shown in the interface d in Figure 17.

[0290] In the interface shown in Figure 17d, the electronic device displays the email application icon 1703 on the desktop, but does not display the email application icon 1703 in the operable hidden window 1701.

[0291] In this way, users can add or delete hidden information in the hidden window using drag-and-drop operations, thus managing the hidden information in the hidden window. At the same time, users can use the same operation to delete hidden information, making the operation more consistent and improving the user experience.

[0292] In another possible implementation, the electronic device can delete hidden information based on a delete control. For example, in the interface shown in Figure 17a, the electronic device can display an operable hidden window 1701; the operable hidden window 1701 includes a game application icon 1702 and an email application icon 1703. Upon receiving a long-press operation on the email application icon 1703, the electronic device can enter the interface shown in Figure 17c.

[0293] In the interface shown in Figure 17c, the electronic device can display a delete control corresponding to any application icon. For example, the game application icon 1702 corresponds to the delete control 1704; the email application icon 1703 corresponds to the delete control 1705. The delete control can be used to delete hidden information in a hidden window. When a click operation is received on the delete control 1705, the electronic device can display the interface shown in Figure 17d.

[0294] In the interface shown in Figure 17d, the electronic device displays the email application icon 1703 on the desktop, but does not display the email application icon 1703 in the operable hidden window 1701.

[0295] In this way, users can delete hidden information using the delete control, thus managing the hidden information in the hidden window; at the same time, when there are multiple pieces of hidden information to be deleted in the hidden window, users can quickly delete multiple pieces of hidden information using the delete control, simplifying user operations.

[0296] Optionally, in this embodiment, the electronic device may have one or more pre-set hidden windows for user use. Alternatively, the user can customize the number and position of hidden windows according to their needs. For example, the settings application may include settings for hiding functions, allowing the user to add, delete, and adjust the position of hidden windows (e.g., if the user is accustomed to swiping up and down, the hidden windows on the left and right sides of the screen can be set as the hidden windows on the top and bottom sides). This embodiment does not impose any limitations on this.

[0297] Optionally, in this embodiment, the method of adding hidden information in an operable hidden window is described using the operation of dragging and dropping hidden information as an example. In practical applications, electronic devices can also use other methods to achieve the effect of adding hidden information in an operable hidden window.

[0298] For example, after an operable hidden window is brought up, the electronic device can receive a long-press operation on the application icon. In response to this operation, the electronic device makes the application icon operable and displays one or more settings controls on one side of the icon. These settings controls may include, for example, a share control, an application information control, and an uninstall control. Furthermore, the settings controls may also include a hide control. Upon receiving a trigger operation on the hide control, the electronic device can hide the application icon in the operable hidden window. This application embodiment does not impose any limitations on this.

[0299] Optionally, this application uses a mobile phone as an example to illustrate the information hiding method in this application embodiment. In practical applications, the electronic device can also be a PC, PAD, foldable electronic device, or other large-screen device; this application embodiment does not impose any limitations on this.

[0300] The above embodiments, in conjunction with the interfaces shown in Figures 3-17, illustrate the application scenarios of the information hiding method in the embodiments of this application. The following, in conjunction with Figures 18-20, describes the usage flow of the information hiding method in the embodiments of this application.

[0301] Electronic devices may include cameras, window management modules, touch management modules, gaze recognition modules, gesture recognition modules, face recognition modules, permission management modules, desktop management modules, etc.

[0302] Figure 18 shows a flowchart of an information hiding method provided in an embodiment of this application. As shown in Figure 18:

[0303] S1801. After the hidden function is enabled, the electronic device collects the user's eye information based on the camera.

[0304] The user's eye information can be obtained by capturing an image of the user's eyes. In this embodiment, the electronic device can enable a hiding function based on a settings application.

[0305] To reduce power consumption for real-time monitoring, the camera in this embodiment can be a low-power camera. Alternatively, the electronic device can also reduce camera power consumption in the following ways: when the screen is on or unlocked, the electronic device can use the camera to collect the user's eye information in real time; when the screen is off, in AOD (Always On Demand) mode, or locked, the electronic device can avoid using the camera to collect the user's eye information.

[0306] S1802, The gaze recognition module obtains the user's eye information and identifies the user's field of vision.

[0307] After collecting the user's eye information, the camera can report this information to the gaze recognition module. The gaze recognition module can identify the position of the user's gaze on the screen.

[0308] For example, electronic devices can obtain a user's field of vision in the following way: after the camera captures the original image, a face detection model is used to identify facial key points in the original image; an eye sub-image is cropped based on the eye key points; a human eye gaze recognition model is used to predict the confidence level of any gaze region in the human eye sub-image; and if the confidence level is greater than the confidence level threshold, the gaze region corresponding to the user's field of vision is obtained.

[0309] The electronic device can obtain the gaze area of ​​the human eye. For example, in Figure 8, the electronic device may include four gaze areas, and the electronic device can use the above process to identify whether the user is looking at any of the gaze areas. Alternatively, for example, in Figure 7, the electronic device may include one gaze area, and the electronic device can use the above process to identify whether the user is looking at that gaze area. Embodiments of this application may also use other methods to obtain the gaze range of the human eye, and this application does not limit this approach.

[0310] S1803. When the user's line of sight is within the gaze area, the gaze recognition module instructs the window management module to activate one or more hidden windows corresponding to the gaze area.

[0311] It is understood that in the embodiments of this application, any gaze area corresponds to one or more hidden windows, and the electronic device can activate all hidden windows corresponding to that gaze area. For example, in the interface shown in Figure 7, the user's gaze range is located in gaze area 301, and gaze area 301 corresponds to hidden windows 302, 303, 701, and 702. In this case, hidden windows 302, 303, 701, and 702 are all activated. As another example, in the interface shown in Figure 8, the user's gaze range is located in gaze area 801, and gaze area 801 corresponds to hidden window 805. In this case, hidden window 805 is activated.

[0312] Once the hidden window is activated, the electronic device can bring up the hidden window using gestures; conversely, if the hidden window is not activated, the user cannot bring up the hidden window using gestures.

[0313] It is understood that steps S1801-S1803 can be optional. Electronic devices can use other methods to trigger user gesture recognition. This application embodiment does not impose any limitations on this.

[0314] S1804. Within a preset time period, the camera collects the user's gesture operation information.

[0315] The preset time can be the duration the hidden window remains active. User gesture information can be captured as an image of the user's hand. While the hidden window is active, the electronic device can capture the user's gestures using the camera; after the preset time, the hidden window is no longer active, and the camera can stop capturing the user's gestures, thereby reducing power consumption and minimizing the possibility of misidentifying gestures.

[0316] Understandably, the camera can capture multiple images during the user's gesture operation; afterwards, the camera can report these images to the gesture recognition module.

[0317] S1805 The gesture recognition module recognizes the user's gesture operations and transmits the user's gesture operations to the window management module.

[0318] Electronic devices can recognize user gestures by: acquiring multiple images including the user's hand; identifying the starting point of the gesture in the multiple images; and extracting the gesture trajectory after identifying the starting point to obtain the gesture operation. Gesture operations can include, for example, pulling up, pulling down, pulling left, and pulling right. Taking pulling up as an example, as the acquisition time changes, the y-coordinate value of the gesture trajectory point gradually decreases, and the x-coordinate fluctuation is within a certain range, thus it is recognized as pulling up. Other methods can also be used to recognize gesture operations in this application embodiment, and no limitation is made here.

[0319] S1806. When a gesture operation is detected and the hidden window corresponding to the gesture operation is activated, the window management module controls the display of the operable hidden window on the screen.

[0320] The hidden window corresponding to the gesture operation can be a hidden window located outside the screen in the opposite direction to the gesture operation. For example, referring to Figure 7, an upward swipe gesture corresponds to hidden window 702, which is located in the outer area at the bottom of the screen; a downward swipe gesture corresponds to hidden window 701, which is located in the outer area at the top of the screen; a leftward swipe gesture corresponds to hidden window 303, which is located in the outer area on the right side of the screen; and a rightward swipe gesture corresponds to hidden window 302, which is located in the outer area on the left side of the screen.

[0321] The activation condition of the hidden window corresponding to the gesture operation can be used to reduce the accidental triggering of multiple hidden windows in the same direction outside the screen. For example, in Figure 8, there are four hidden windows on the left side outside the screen. If the gesture operation is to drag to the right and the hidden window 805 corresponding to the gaze area 801 is activated, the electronic device can bring up hidden window 805. Since hidden windows 806, 807, and 808 are not activated, the electronic device will not display these three hidden windows.

[0322] When a gesture is detected and the corresponding hidden window is activated, the electronic device can display an operable hidden window. For example, in the interface shown in Figure 4d, the electronic device can display an operable hidden window 402.

[0323] S1807. When an operable hidden window is displayed, a drag operation for hidden information is received.

[0324] For drag-and-drop operations involving hidden information, please refer to the drag-and-drop operations shown in Figures 6, 11, 13, and 15.

[0325] S1808, the touch management module recognizes drag-and-drop operations.

[0326] Electronic devices may include touch sensors that can detect touch points on the screen. The touch sensors report these points to a touch management module, which then identifies touch events, such as down events, up events, and move events.

[0327] Taking the drag operation of the music application icon 601 in the embodiment shown in Figure 6 as an example, when the touch object is located on the music application icon 601 on the desktop, the touch management module receives a down event, and the reporting point of the down event corresponds to the coordinates of the music application icon 601. Subsequently, the touch object continues to act on the music application icon 601 and moves it. The touch management module can recognize the move event, and the touch object can notify the desktop application to move the music application icon 601 according to the reporting point of the move event.

[0328] S1809. When hidden information is moved to an operable hidden window, the touch management module instructs the window management module to add the hidden information to the operable hidden window.

[0329] Taking the embodiment shown in Figure 6 as an example, when the music application icon 601 moves into the operable hidden window 402, the touch object leaves the screen. The touch management module can recognize the up event, and the reporting point of the up event is within the coordinate range of the operable hidden window 402. Then the touch management module instructs the window management module to add the music application icon 601 into the operable hidden window 402.

[0330] S1810 The gesture recognition module recognizes the user's gesture operations and transmits the user's gesture operations to the window management module.

[0331] This step can be referred to in the relevant description in step S1805, and will not be repeated here.

[0332] S1811. When a reverse gesture operation is detected, the window management module controls the hidden window not to be displayed on the screen.

[0333] A reverse gesture operation can be understood as a handheld operation that is opposite in direction to the gesture operation in step S1806. For example, if the gesture operation in step S1806 is to pull upwards, then the reverse gesture operation is to pull downwards; if the gesture operation in step S1806 is to pull to the left, then the reverse gesture operation is to pull to the right; this application embodiment will not list them all.

[0334] Now, after bringing up the operable hidden window, the electronic device can add hidden information to the hidden window and then hide the hidden window, thereby improving the security of the hidden information.

[0335] Understandably, to enhance the security of hidden information, electronic devices can bind hidden windows to user information. For example, step S1809 may specifically include:

[0336] 1) The camera collects the user's facial information.

[0337] The user's facial information can be captured by taking an image of the user's face. After bringing up an operable hidden window, the electronic device can use its camera to capture the user's facial information.

[0338] 2) The face recognition module extracts feature information from the user's face information and transmits the feature information to the permission management module.

[0339] After obtaining the image, the face recognition module can use a face detection model to identify facial landmarks in the image and extract the current user's facial feature information. Upon initial use of the hidden window, the electronic device can use this user's facial information as a preset user's facial information, thereby obtaining the preset user's feature information. Subsequent times the hidden window is used, the user's identity can be verified based on the preset user's facial information.

[0340] 3) The permission management module binds the preset user's characteristic information to the hidden window and stores the binding relationship.

[0341] In this embodiment of the application, the permission management module can manage user identities.

[0342] Taking Figure 13 as an example, User A holds an electronic device, and the electronic device displays the interface shown in Figure 13a. The operable hidden window 1204 in this interface is a blank hidden window, which can be considered as the first time the hidden window has been used. After the operable hidden window 1204 is brought up and a social application window 1301 is added to it, the electronic device uses User A's characteristic information as the characteristic information of a preset user. Simultaneously, the electronic device binds the preset user's characteristic information to the operable hidden window 1204. Subsequently, when User A uses the social application window 1301 based on the interface shown in Figure 13c, the electronic device can compare User A's characteristic information with the preset user's characteristic information to verify the user's identity.

[0343] It is understood that in the embodiments of this application, an electronic device may include multiple hidden windows, and the electronic device may bind all hidden windows to the feature information of a single user; the electronic device may also bind a single hidden window to the feature information of a single user.

[0344] For example, an electronic device can bind all hidden windows to the characteristic information of a single user. For instance, when user A first uses any one of the multiple hidden windows, the electronic device binds user A's characteristic information to all hidden windows. Subsequently, user A can use any one of the multiple hidden windows. This implementation is applicable to personal devices such as mobile phones and tablets, reducing the number of times the electronic device repeatedly executes steps 1) to 3), thus reducing power consumption.

[0345] Alternatively, the electronic device can bind a single hidden window to the characteristic information of a single user. For example, when user A uses hidden window A for the first time, the electronic device binds user A's characteristic information to hidden window A. When user B uses hidden window B for the first time, the electronic device binds user B's characteristic information to hidden window B. Subsequently, user A can use hidden window A, and user B can use hidden window B. This implementation method is applicable to, for example, public devices and can improve the security of personal data in public devices. This application does not limit the application scenarios of the above two implementation methods.

[0346] 4) The window management module adds hidden information to the operable hidden windows.

[0347] For example, in the interface shown in Figure 6c, the window management module adds the music application icon 601 to the operable hidden window 402. In the interface shown in Figure 11c, the window management module adds the trip card 1003 to the operable hidden window 901. In the interface shown in Figure 13c, the window management module adds the social application window 1301 to the operable hidden window 1204. In the interface shown in Figure 15c, the window management module adds the ride-hailing service icon 1401 to the operable hidden window 1406.

[0348] Optionally, after step 4), the following may also be included:

[0349] 5) The window management module instructs the desktop management module to cancel the display of icons corresponding to hidden information.

[0350] Understandably, after adding hidden information to a hidden window, the electronic device can hide the corresponding icon for that hidden information on the desktop. For example, in the interface shown in Figure 6c, the desktop management module hides the email application icon 302 (as shown in the dashed box 602). In the interface shown in Figure 11c, the desktop management module hides the trip card 1003 (as shown in the dashed box 1101). In the interface shown in Figure 13c, the desktop management module hides the social application icon (as shown in the dashed box 1303). In the interface shown in Figure 15c, the desktop management module hides the ride-hailing service icon.

[0351] Optionally, the desktop management module may instruct itself to disable the display of the icon corresponding to the hidden information when the hidden information is added to the hidden window. Alternatively, the desktop management module may instruct itself to disable the display of the icon corresponding to the hidden information when the hidden window is collapsed. This embodiment of the application does not impose any limitations on this.

[0352] Optionally, in this embodiment of the application, to reduce the complexity of user operations, the user authentication process can be made seamless for the user; for example, automatic facial recognition and unlocking. In other embodiments, this embodiment of the application can also verify user information through password unlocking, fingerprint unlocking, etc. Correspondingly, the electronic device can establish a binding relationship between the user's input password, recorded fingerprint, and other information and the hidden window. This embodiment of the application does not impose any limitations on this.

[0353] This associates user information with the hidden window, thereby enhancing the security of information hidden within the hidden window.

[0354] The process of a user using hidden information in this embodiment of the application is described below with reference to Figure 19, as shown in Figure 19:

[0355] S1901. Electronic devices collect user eye information based on cameras.

[0356] S1902, The gaze recognition module obtains the user's eye information and identifies the user's field of vision.

[0357] S1903. When the user's line of sight is within the gaze area, the gaze recognition module instructs the window management module to activate one or more hidden windows corresponding to the gaze area.

[0358] S1904. Within a preset time period, the camera collects the user's gesture operation information.

[0359] S1905, The gesture recognition module recognizes the user's gesture operations and transmits the user's gesture operations to the window management module.

[0360] Steps S1901-S1905 can be referred to the relevant descriptions in steps S1801-S1805, and will not be repeated here.

[0361] S1906. When a gesture operation is detected and the hidden window corresponding to the gesture operation is activated, the camera captures the current user's facial information.

[0362] Understandably, when an electronic device receives a user's gaze and gesture, it indicates that the user wants to use a hidden window. Before the window management module controls the display of the operable hidden window, the window management module can instruct the permission management module to verify the current user's identity. After successful verification, the window management module can display the hidden window corresponding to the gaze area and gesture. The user authentication process can be illustrated as follows: steps S1907-S1909.

[0363] S1907 The face recognition module extracts feature information from the current user's face information and transmits the feature information to the permission management module.

[0364] Steps S1906-S1907 can be referred to the relevant descriptions in steps 1) and 2), and will not be repeated here.

[0365] S1908, The permission management module compares the current user's feature information with the feature information of a preset user; wherein, the feature information of the preset user is bound to the hidden window corresponding to the gesture operation.

[0366] It is understood that in step S1905, the window management module can obtain the gesture operation and obtain the hidden window corresponding to the gesture operation. Taking the embodiments shown in Figures 3 and 4 as examples, in the interface shown in c of Figure 4, the gesture operation can be a rightward drag, and the hidden window corresponding to this gesture operation can be, for example, the hidden window 302 in Figure 3.

[0367] After obtaining the hidden window corresponding to the gesture operation, the window management module can pass the hidden window information to the permission management module. The permission management module stores the binding relationship between hidden windows and the feature information of preset users; it then uses the hidden window information to find the corresponding feature information of the preset user. Additionally, the permission management module obtains the current user's feature information from the face recognition module. Finally, the permission management module compares the feature information of the preset user with that of the current user to determine their similarity.

[0368] S1909. When the similarity is greater than the similarity threshold, the permission management module instructs the window management module to display an operable hidden window on the screen; the operable hidden window includes hidden information.

[0369] The operable hidden window includes hidden information, which may be information added to the operable hidden window by the electronic device using the process shown in steps S1801-S1811.

[0370] The similarity threshold can be used to describe whether the current user and the preset user are the same user. If the similarity is greater than the similarity threshold, the current user and the preset user are the same user, the user identity verification passes, and the permission management module can notify the window management module of the verification result, so that the window management module can control the display of an operable hidden window on the screen.

[0371] Alternatively, if the similarity is less than or equal to the similarity threshold, and the current user is not the same user as the preset user, the electronic device can discard the gesture operation and not execute the process of displaying a hidden window on the screen, in order to improve the security of the hidden information.

[0372] S1910. When a click operation targeting hidden information is received in an operable hidden window, the touch management module identifies the click operation.

[0373] The touch management module can receive down and up events, and the reported point is located at the icon of the hidden information. The touch management module recognizes the click event and distributes the click event to the window management module.

[0374] S1911, The touch management module instructs the window management module to display the window corresponding to the hidden information.

[0375] The window corresponding to the hidden information can be a full-screen window or a floating window that displays the specific content of the hidden information.

[0376] Taking the embodiment shown in Figure 5 as an example, the icon for hiding information is the email application icon 305; after clicking the email application icon 305, the electronic device displays a full-screen window of the email application, as shown in Figure 5b.

[0377] In this way, after adding hidden information, users can view the hidden information; and during the viewing process, the electronic device will verify the user's identity, improving the user experience.

[0378] It should be noted that, in this embodiment, the hidden information can be an application icon, card, application window, or shortcut tool, etc. When the hidden information is an application window, the electronic device can add the application window to the hidden window. However, in practical applications, after adding the application window to the hidden window, the application runs in the background; and the anti-cheat mechanism in the electronic device can easily kill the application running in the background, thus causing the application window to be cleared, affecting the user experience of using the application window subsequently.

[0379] To address this issue, in this embodiment of the application, after adding the application window to a hidden window, the electronic device can keep the application window alive to prevent it from being detected and killed.

[0380] For example, Figure 20 shows a schematic diagram of a process for adding an application window according to an embodiment of this application. For example, as shown in Figure 20:

[0381] Hiding information, such as application windows, includes, after adding the application window to the operable hidden window in step S1809:

[0382] S2001, The application corresponding to the background running application window of the electronic device.

[0383] After hiding an application window, the corresponding application can run in the background. It's understandable that if the application is exited, the application window might be closed, requiring the electronic device to restart the application when the user uses it again, increasing the user's waiting time. Therefore, hiding the application window allows it to run in the background.

[0384] S2002, Electronic devices add a keep-alive flag to applications.

[0385] Electronic devices may also include a memory management module to manage the device's memory resources. Under heavy memory load, the memory management module may kill certain processes, such as background application processes, empty processes, and low-priority processes. To keep application windows alive from being hidden until they are used, electronic devices can add a keep-alive flag to the application to keep it running.

[0386] Keep-alive flags can be, for example, adding application information to a keep-alive whitelist, and / or marking application information as high priority. Application information may include the application's process name, process ID, and / or package name, etc.

[0387] S2003: The application icon is hidden from the desktop of the electronic device.

[0388] The process can be referred to in step 5), and will not be repeated here.

[0389] It should be noted that, in this embodiment of the application, the electronic device can keep the application alive during the application window hiding stage; when the user manually closes the application window, or the user deletes the application window in the hidden window, the electronic device can cancel the keep-alive of the application, and the memory management module can kill the application window.

[0390] In this way, electronic devices can ensure that applications run in the background while the application window is hidden, and the electronic devices can quickly launch the application window based on the application window icon, reducing the user's waiting time.

[0391] It should be noted that the user information (including but not limited to user device information, user personal information, etc.) and data (including but not limited to data used for analysis, data stored, data displayed, etc.) involved in this application are all information and data authorized by the user or fully authorized by all parties. Furthermore, the collection, use and processing of the relevant data must comply with the relevant laws, regulations and standards of the relevant countries and regions, and corresponding operation portals are provided for users to choose to authorize or refuse.

[0392] The information hiding method of the present application embodiments has been described above. The apparatus for performing the above method provided in the present application embodiments is described below. Those skilled in the art will understand that the methods and apparatus can be combined and referenced with each other, and the related apparatus provided in the present application embodiments can perform the steps in the above information hiding method.

[0393] As shown in Figure 21, the information hiding device 2100 can be used in communication equipment, circuits, hardware components, or chips. The information hiding device includes a display unit 2101 and a processing unit 2102. The display unit 2101 is used to support the display steps performed by the information hiding device 2100; the processing unit 2102 is used to support the information processing steps performed by the information hiding device 2100.

[0394] In a possible implementation, the information hiding device 2100 may also include a communication unit 2103. Specifically, the communication unit supports the information hiding device 2100 in performing data transmission and data reception steps. The communication unit 2103 may be an input or output interface, pins, or circuits, etc.

[0395] In a possible embodiment, the information hiding device may further include a storage unit 2104. The processing unit 2102 and the storage unit 2104 are connected via a line. The storage unit 2104 may include one or more memories, which may be devices in one or more devices or circuits used for storing programs or data. The storage unit 2104 may exist independently and be connected to the processing unit 2102 of the information hiding device via a communication line. Alternatively, the storage unit 2104 may be integrated with the processing unit 2102.

[0396] Storage unit 2104 may store computer-executable instructions for the methods in the terminal device, so that processing unit 2102 executes the methods in the above embodiments. Storage unit 2104 may be a register, cache, or RAM, etc., and storage unit 2104 may be integrated with processing unit 2102. Storage unit 2104 may be a read-only memory (ROM) or other types of static storage devices capable of storing static information and instructions, and storage unit 2104 may be independent of processing unit 2102.

[0397] This application provides an electronic device, which includes a processor and a memory; the memory stores computer-executable instructions; the processor executes the computer-executable instructions stored in the memory, causing the electronic device to perform the above-described method.

[0398] This application provides a chip. The chip includes a processor, which is used to call a computer program in memory to execute the technical solutions in the above embodiments. Its implementation principle and technical effects are similar to those in the related embodiments described above, and will not be repeated here.

[0399] This application also provides a computer-readable storage medium. The computer-readable storage medium stores a computer program. When the computer program is executed by a processor, it implements the methods described above. The methods described in the above embodiments can be implemented wholly or partially by software, hardware, firmware, or any combination thereof. If implemented in software, the functionality can be stored as one or more instructions or code on or transmitted over the computer-readable medium. The computer-readable medium can include computer storage media and communication media, and can also include any medium that can transfer a computer program from one place to another. The storage medium can be any target medium accessible by a computer.

[0400] In one possible implementation, a computer-readable medium may include random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM) or other optical disc storage, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage devices, or any other medium intended to carry or store required program code in the form of instructions or data structures, and accessible by a computer. Furthermore, any connection is appropriately referred to as a computer-readable medium. For example, if software is transmitted from a website, server, or other remote source using coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, digital subscriber line (DSL), or wireless technologies such as infrared, radio, and microwave, then coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, DSL, or wireless technologies such as infrared, radio, and microwave are included in the definition of medium. As used herein, disks and optical discs include optical discs, laser discs, optical discs, digital versatile discs (DVDs), floppy disks, and Blu-ray discs, where disks typically reproduce data magnetically, while optical discs optically reproduce data using lasers. Combinations of the above should also be included within the scope of computer-readable media.

[0401] This application provides a computer program product, which includes a computer program that, when run, causes a computer to perform the above-described method.

[0402] It should be noted that the modules or components described in the above embodiments can be one or more integrated circuits configured to implement the above methods, such as one or more application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), one or more digital signal processors (DSPs), or one or more field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), etc. Furthermore, when a module is implemented through processing element scheduler code, the processing element can be a general-purpose processor, such as a central processing unit (CPU) or other processors capable of calling program code, such as a controller. Additionally, these modules can be integrated together to implement a system-on-a-chip (SOC).

[0403] In the above embodiments, implementation can be achieved, in whole or in part, through software, hardware, firmware, or any combination thereof. When implemented in software, it can be implemented, in whole or in part, as a computer program product. A computer program product includes one or more computer instructions. When the computer program instructions are loaded and executed on a computer, all or part of the flow or function according to the embodiments of this application is generated. The computer can be a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, a computer network, or other programmable device. The computer instructions can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium or transmitted from one computer-readable storage medium to another. For example, computer instructions can be transmitted from one website, computer, server, or data center to another website, computer, server, or data center via wired (e.g., coaxial cable, fiber optic, digital subscriber line (DSL)) or wireless (e.g., infrared, wireless, microwave, etc.) means. The computer-readable storage medium can be any available medium that a computer can access or a data storage device such as a server or data center that integrates one or more available media. The available medium can be a magnetic medium (e.g., floppy disk, hard disk, magnetic tape), an optical medium (e.g., DVD), or a semiconductor medium (e.g., a solid-state disk (SSD)).

[0404] The term "multiple" in this document refers to two or more. The term "and / or" is merely a description of the relationship between related objects, indicating that three relationships can exist. For example, A and / or B can represent: A alone, A and B simultaneously, or B alone. Furthermore, the character " / " in this document generally indicates an "or" relationship between the preceding and following related objects; in formulas, " / " indicates a "division" relationship. Additionally, it should be understood that in the description of this application, words such as "first" and "second" are used only for descriptive purposes and should not be construed as indicating or implying relative importance or order.

[0405] It is understood that the various numerical designations used in the embodiments of this application are merely for descriptive convenience and are not intended to limit the scope of the embodiments of this application.

[0406] It is understood that, in the embodiments of this application, the order of the above-mentioned process numbers does not imply the order of execution. The execution order of each process should be determined by its function and internal logic, and should not constitute any limitation on the implementation process of the embodiments of this application.

Claims

1. An information hiding method, characterized in that, Applied to electronic devices, including: The first interface is displayed; the first interface includes first information; In response to the first operation, a first window is displayed on the first interface; wherein the first window is a hidden window; In response to the operation of dragging the first information to the first window, the first information is displayed in the first window; In response to the second operation, the first window is de-displayed on the first interface, and the first information is also de-displayed on the first interface.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, After de-displaying the first window in the first interface, the method further includes: In response to the first operation, the first window is displayed in the first interface; the first window includes the first information. In response to a trigger operation on the first information, a second interface is displayed. The second interface is the interface of the target application, and the first information corresponds to the target application.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that, Before displaying the first window in the first interface in response to the first operation, the method further includes: The system detects a user's gaze at a first region, wherein the first region corresponds to one or more hidden windows, and the one or more hidden windows include the first window.

4. The method according to any one of claims 1-3, characterized in that, Before displaying the first window on the first interface, the method further includes: When a user's feature information is the same as that of a preset user, the first window is displayed on the first interface, wherein the feature information of the preset user includes the preset user's facial information, fingerprint information, voice information, iris information and / or password information.

5. The method according to any one of claims 1-4, characterized in that, The first operation includes a first air gesture, and the second operation includes a second air gesture, wherein the first air gesture is the movement of the touch object in a first direction within the recognition range of the electronic device, and the second air gesture is the movement of the touch object in a second direction within the recognition range of the electronic device, wherein the first direction is opposite to the second direction; Before displaying the first window in the first interface, the method further includes: placing the first window in the outer region of the screen on the second directional side.

6. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The first interface also includes second information, and the method further includes: In response to a third operation, a second window is displayed on the first interface; wherein the third operation is different from the first operation, and the second window is the hidden window; the second window is different from the first window; In response to the operation of dragging the second information into the second window, the second information is displayed in the second window; In response to the fourth operation, the second window is de-displayed on the first interface, and the second information is also de-displayed on the first interface; the fourth operation is different from the second operation.

7. The method according to any one of claims 3-6, characterized in that, The method further includes: The first interface is displayed; the first interface includes third information; The system detects that the user is looking at a second region, which does not overlap with the first region; the second region corresponds to one or more hidden windows; the one or more hidden windows corresponding to the second region are different from the one or more hidden windows corresponding to the first region; wherein, the one or more hidden windows corresponding to the second region include a third window. In response to the fifth operation, the third window is displayed in the first interface; In response to the operation of dragging the third information to the third window, the third information is displayed in the third window; In response to the sixth operation, the third window is de-displayed on the first interface, and the third information is also de-displayed on the first interface.

8. The method according to any one of claims 1-7, characterized in that, After displaying the first window in the first interface, the following is also included: In response to a seventh operation on the first window, the first window is moved from a first position to a second position; the first position is different from the second position; the seventh operation includes a drag operation; In response to an eighth operation on the first window, the first window is scaled from a first size to a second size, the first size being different from the second size; the eighth operation includes a two-finger pinch operation.

9. The method according to any one of claims 1-8, characterized in that, The first information includes the icon of the first application; The step of displaying the first information in the first window in response to the operation of dragging the first information to the first window includes: In response to the operation of dragging the icon of the first application to the first window, the icon of the first application is displayed in the first window.

10. The method according to claim 9, characterized in that, After displaying the icon of the first application in the first window, the method further includes: In response to the operation of dragging the icon of the second application to the first window, the icons of the first application and the second application are displayed in the first window; the second application is different from the first application.

11. The method according to any one of claims 6-10, characterized in that, The second piece of information includes the card for the third application.

12. The method according to any one of claims 7-11, characterized in that, The third information includes the window of the fourth application; the response to the sixth operation, canceling the display of the third window and the third information on the first interface, includes: In response to the sixth operation, the third window, the window of the fourth application, and the icon of the fourth application are de-displayed in the first interface.

13. The method according to claim 12, characterized in that, Also includes: The fourth application runs in the background, and a keep-alive flag is added to the fourth application; The addition of the keep-alive flag includes: adding the information of the fourth application to the keep-alive whitelist, the keep-alive whitelist being used to keep processes in memory alive, the information of the fourth application including one or more of the following: the process ID of the fourth application, the process name of the fourth application and / or the package name of the fourth application; or, setting the priority of the fourth application to a first priority, the first priority being higher than the original priority of the fourth application.

14. The method according to any one of claims 1-13, characterized in that, The hidden window of the electronic device also includes a fourth window, which includes a shortcut tool for a fourth application; the shortcut tool for the fourth application is used to quickly launch services in the fourth application.

15. The method according to any one of claims 2-14, characterized in that, After displaying the second interface, the method further includes: In response to the ninth operation, a multitasking interface is displayed; wherein the multitasking interface includes the content of the target application and the icon of the target application, and both the content of the target application and the icon of the target application are blurred; or, the multitasking interface does not include the content of the target application and the icon of the target application.

16. The method according to any one of claims 2-15, characterized in that, After displaying the first window on the first interface, the method further includes: In response to the tenth operation on the first information, the first information is de-displayed in the first window; In response to the second operation, the first window is de-displayed on the first interface, and the first information is displayed on the first interface.

17. An electronic device, characterized in that, The electronic device includes: one or more processors and memory; The memory is coupled to the one or more processors, the memory being used to store computer program code, the computer program code including computer instructions, the one or more processors invoking the computer instructions to cause the electronic device to perform the method as described in any one of claims 1-16.

18. A chip system, characterized in that, The chip system is applied to an electronic device, the chip system including one or more processors, the one or more processors being used to invoke computer instructions to cause the electronic device to perform the method as described in any one of claims 1-16.

19. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that, The computer-readable storage medium includes computer instructions that, when executed on an electronic device, cause the electronic device to perform the method as described in any one of claims 1-16.

20. A computer program product, characterized in that, The computer program product includes computer program code that, when run on an electronic device, causes the electronic device to perform the method as described in any one of claims 1-16.

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