Lower-Layer Feedback Generation Reduces Latency
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Solution Overview
Problem
Computer systems experience latency in generating feedback for user inputs, leading to a less responsive and unnatural user interface experience due to the time it takes for feedback to be processed across multiple software layers.
Innovation Solution
Generating feedback in a lower-layer software component instead of an upper-layer component, using parameters based on previous inputs to reduce the number of software layer boundaries that input and feedback must pass through, thereby decreasing latency.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of time
If feedback is generated in an upper-layer software component, then the software architecture maintains high abstraction and modularity, but the feedback latency increases making the interface feel less responsive
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by pre-calculating and storing feedback parameters (such as inertia, friction, and gravity parameters) in the lower-layer component before actual user input occurs. When an input event is received, the lower-layer component can immediately generate feedback using these pre-prepared parameters without needing to communicate with the upper layer, thus reducing latency while maintaining architectural integrity.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent segments the feedback generation process by separating the parameter storage function (in the lower-layer component) from the parameter calculation function (in the upper-layer component). This segmentation allows the lower layer to have immediate access to necessary parameters for rapid feedback generation, while the upper layer retains responsibility for determining appropriate parameter values based on application logic.
2Productivity
If feedback parameters are pre-determined and stored in the lower-layer component, then feedback generation speed increases, but the adaptability to different input scenarios may be reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements parameter changes by allowing the feedback parameters stored in the lower-layer component to be dynamically updated based on the specific type of input event received. Different input events (e.g., drag, tap, long-press) can trigger the use of different pre-stored parameter sets, enabling the system to maintain high-speed feedback generation while adapting to various interaction scenarios through parameter selection rather than recalculation.
Data Source
AI summary
A latency between an input and its corresponding feedback can be reduced by generating the feedback in a lower-layer software component instead of in an upper-layer software component. The lower-layer component generates the feedback based on one or more parameters associated with a given input type. The parameters were previously created based on, for example, one or more previous inputs. Generating feedback in a lower-layer component reduces the number of software layer boundaries that the input and feedback pass through, thus reducing the latency between the feedback and input.