Flexible Display Gesture Control for Tactile Page Turning

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Solution Overview

Problem

Current electronic devices with touch screens lack the tactile experience of page turning, as users do not receive a tactile sense for remaining pages, which can diminish the reading experience of e-books and other digital content.

Innovation Solution

An electronic device with a flexible display unit that can be bent, curved, or deformed, equipped with a gesture analysis program and display program to detect user gestures and control content playback, including page turning, by displaying an interval control area and adjusting playback time and speed based on user input.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Area of stationary object

If a touch screen is used to display e-book content, then the display area is increased and additional input devices are removed, but the user does not receive tactile sense for page turning

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvedisplay areaVSAvoidtactile feedback
Core Design Contradiction:
Area of stationary objectVSEase of manufacture

Solution Approach 1:

The patent applies a flexible display that can be bent or deformed to provide tactile feedback. The flexible display unit responds to user bending actions by deforming in correspondence with the bending input, creating a tactile sensation similar to turning physical pages while maintaining the benefits of a full-touch display interface.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #30Flexible shells and thin films

2Ease of operation

If a flexible display is applied to provide folding or unfolding effect, then the tactile sense is improved, but the device complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvetactile senseVSAvoiddevice complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
Ease of operationVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The flexible display serves multiple functions: it displays visual content like a traditional screen and simultaneously provides tactile feedback through deformation. This multi-functionality allows the single component to replace what would traditionally require separate elements for display and tactile feedback, thereby reducing overall device complexity while maintaining enhanced user interaction.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

Solution Approach 2:

The flexible display automatically deforms in response to user bending actions without requiring additional sensors or complex detection mechanisms. The material's inherent flexibility enables it to self-respond to physical manipulation, providing tactile feedback through its own physical properties rather than requiring external control systems.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #25Self-service

3Adaptability or versatility

If gesture detection is implemented to control content playback, then the user interface is enhanced, but the processing requirements and energy consumption increase

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveuser interfaceVSAvoidenergy consumption
Core Design Contradiction:
Adaptability or versatilityVSUse of energy by moving object

Solution Approach 1:

The flexible display's deformation in response to bending actions serves as both the input mechanism and the feedback mechanism. The physical deformation itself provides the gesture data without requiring separate sensors, and the visual content updates in response to this deformation. This self-service approach reduces processing requirements and energy consumption compared to systems that would require dedicated gesture detection hardware and complex software processing.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #25Self-service

Data Source

PatentEP2759920B1Method and apparatus for controlling content playback
Publication Date: 2021.11.10 SAMSUNG ELECTRONICS CO LTD
  • EP2759920B1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP2759920B1 patent drawingFigure 2
  • EP2759920B1 patent drawingFigure 3

AI summary

A method and an apparatus are provided for controlling content in an electronic device. A gesture detection area that detects a gesture of a user is displayed, when a display unit of the electronic device is deformed during content playback. A range of the gesture detection area corresponds to a degree of the content playback. The gesture of the user is detected in the gesture detection area. The content being played is controlled in accordance with the gesture of the user.