Automatic Input Style Selection for External Displays
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Solution Overview
Problem
Users face frustration when connecting small mobile devices to external displays due to differences in input styles, such as touch-enabled vs. non-touch-enabled devices, leading to difficulties in interacting with the external display.
Innovation Solution
An automatic input style selection system that determines whether the external display is touch-enabled or not, and adjusts the input style of the electronic device accordingly, allowing users to interact with the external display using their preferred method without needing to manually select the input style.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If the electronic device uses touch-based inputs, then the device can be easily controlled on small screens, but the external display cannot be interacted with using the same input method
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements dynamic input style switching based on display type. The system automatically detects whether the active display is the device's touchscreen or an external display, and dynamically changes the input method accordingly - using touch gestures for the device screen and mouse/keyboard for external displays. This dynamic adaptation resolves the contradiction by making the input system flexible rather than fixed.
Solution Approach 2:
The system automatically detects the display type and selects the appropriate input style without user intervention. The device self-adjusts its input behavior based on the connected display's capabilities, eliminating the need for users to manually configure input settings and ensuring seamless compatibility across different display types.
2Adaptability or versatility
If the external display uses a different input style than the device, then the external display can be used with various devices, but users experience frustration when the input styles do not match
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces an intermediary layer - the operating system's display management system - that translates between different input styles. When an external display is detected, the OS acts as a mediator, capturing mouse/keyboard inputs and translating them into appropriate actions for the connected device, thereby harmonizing the interaction between displays with different input capabilities.
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes the input parameter (input style) based on the display parameter (display type). When the external display is detected, the input style parameter automatically switches from touch-based to mouse/keyboard-based. This parameter transformation ensures that the input method always matches the capabilities of the active display, maintaining ease of operation across different display configurations.
3Measurement precision
If users must manually select the input style, then the system can be precisely controlled, but the process becomes complex and time-consuming
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs automatic display type detection and input style selection without requiring user configuration. The OS monitors display connections and automatically adjusts input settings based on detected display capabilities, achieving precise input style matching while eliminating the complexity of manual configuration entirely.
Solution Approach 2:
The system implements continuous feedback monitoring of display connection status and type. When a display is connected or disconnected, the system receives feedback about the change and automatically adjusts the input style accordingly. This feedback loop ensures accurate input style selection while maintaining simple user interaction, as the system self-corrects based on real-time display status.
Data Source
AI summary
An electronic device (e.g., smartphone) can be connected to an external display device, allowing the electronic device to display content on the external display device. The external display device can be a standalone display device or be part of another electronic device (e.g., a laptop or tablet). The electronic device supports multiple input styles including a gesture-based input style and a non-gesture-based input style. The electronic device adapts to the external display device by using the gesture-based input style if the external display device is touch enabled and using the non-gesture-based if the external display is not touch enabled. Additionally or alternatively, the external display device adapts to the input style being used by the electronic device by displaying an augmentation bar associated with the content and supporting the non-gesture-based input style when the external display device detects that the electronic device is using the gesture-based input style.