Media Segment Selection via Touch Gesture Differentiation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Portable electronic devices with small displays face inefficiencies in selecting segments of media files due to limited screen space and difficulty in manipulating small scroll bars, especially on touch-sensitive screens.
Innovation Solution
A graphical user interface with a file-view window displaying representative images of media files, allowing users to select and expand segments through distinct touch actions, enabling precise selection of media file segments for processing.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If scroll bars are enlarged to improve manipulation ease, then ease of operation is improved, but screen space for additional information decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the media file into multiple segments and displays representative images of each segment in a grid layout. This eliminates the need for scroll bars by presenting all segment options simultaneously on the screen, resolving the contradiction between ease of operation and screen space utilization.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent transitions from a linear one-dimensional scroll bar interface to a two-dimensional grid layout of representative images. This dimensional change allows users to navigate media segments more easily by visually selecting from displayed thumbnails rather than manipulating small scroll bar elements, thereby improving ease of operation without sacrificing screen space.
2Loss of information
If multiple segments are displayed with scroll bars for selection, then completeness of information is improved, but ease of operation deteriorates due to small screen size
Solution Approach 1:
The media file is divided into multiple segments, and representative images of all segments are displayed simultaneously in a grid format. This segmentation approach maintains completeness of information by showing all available segments while eliminating the need for scroll bars, thereby improving ease of operation on small screens.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent creates visual copies (representative images or thumbnails) of each media segment and displays them on the screen. These copies allow users to see and select from all segments without needing scroll bars, maintaining information completeness while dramatically improving ease of operation through direct visual selection.
3Ease of operation
If representative images of segments are displayed in an expanded view, then ease of selection is improved, but screen space for other information decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a dynamic interface where the display can switch between a compact grid view showing multiple segments and an expanded view showing a larger representative image of the selected segment. This dynamic adjustment allows the system to adapt to different user needs, providing ease of selection when needed while preserving screen space for other information when in compact mode.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the display parameters (size and number of visible representative images) based on user interaction. When a user selects a segment, the system expands that segment's representative image for detailed viewing while maintaining the ability to return to the compact grid view, thereby balancing ease of selection with screen space utilization.
Data Source
AI summary
The present disclosure provides for a method and an apparatus that enables a collection of media files to be rapidly searched for segments or sub-segments of media content. A graphical user interface is rendered on a display under control of a processor. The interface includes a file-view window configured to display representative images of the media files. In one mode of operation, the processor displays representative images of segments of a selected media file an expanded-view window in response to a sensed user input on the representative image of the media file. A segment may be further expanded or selected for processing in response to a sensed user input on the representative image of the segment in the expanded-view window. Expansion, contraction and selection of a media file, or segments of the media file, are provided.