Touch-Enabled Oscilloscope Waveform Selection with Overlapping Traces
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Solution Overview
Problem
Oscilloscopes with touch screens face challenges in accurately selecting and manipulating waveforms due to overlapping traces, where users often inadvertently select wrong traces or fail to select waveforms when gestures are directed at specific traces rather than the entire image.
Innovation Solution
A method for operating a touch-enabled oscilloscope display that determines the selected waveform by analyzing touch locations and gestures, ensuring operations are applied to the correct waveform without affecting others, using techniques like repeat touching, gesture unambiguity, icon presence, and waveform identification on either side of the touch area.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Quantity of substance
If multiple waveforms are displayed simultaneously on the oscilloscope screen, then the information display capability is improved, but the waveform selection accuracy deteriorates due to overlapping traces
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the waveform selection process into multiple discrete steps: initial touch detection, touch area definition, waveform identification within the touch area, and selection confirmation. This segmentation allows the system to handle multiple overlapping waveforms by processing them in a structured sequence, improving selection accuracy while maintaining the ability to display multiple waveforms simultaneously.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces an intermediary touch area (highlight region) between the user's finger and the waveform selection. This touch area acts as a mediator that defines the selection region, allows the user to see what will be selected before confirmation, and provides a mechanism to distinguish between multiple overlapping waveforms by highlighting them in sequence until one is uniquely identified.
2Ease of operation
If the touch area is made larger to accommodate fingertip size, then the ease of operation is improved, but the waveform selection accuracy deteriorates due to increased likelihood of touching multiple traces
Solution Approach 1:
The patent performs preliminary actions by defining the touch area and highlighting potential waveform selections before the final selection is confirmed. The system identifies all waveforms within the touch area, highlights them in sequence, and only confirms selection when a unique waveform is identified or the user makes a deliberate choice. This preliminary processing ensures accurate selection despite the large touch area required for fingertip compatibility.
3Ease of operation
If the user touches the area under a waveform peak to select the waveform, then the ease of operation is improved, but the waveform selection accuracy deteriorates because the computer program does not recognize this area as part of the waveform
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the definition of waveform selection area with the visual display area. Instead of limiting selection to only the precise trace line, the system defines the touch area to include the entire visual representation of the waveform including peaks, valleys, and the area underneath. This merging allows users to touch any part of the waveform's visual display to select it, improving ease of operation while maintaining accuracy through the touch area analysis algorithm.
Data Source
AI summary
A method for operating a data processing system having a touch enabled display screen that displays a plurality of waveforms to alter the display of one of the waveforms without altering the display of the remaining waveforms is disclosed. The method includes determining a selected waveform in response to a user touching the display screen in a first location thereby defining a touch area that determines the selected waveform. An operation that is to be performed on the selected waveform is then defined by a gesture on the screen. The selected waveform is determined by a touch area that is defined by the user touching the screen. If more than one waveform is defined by the touch area, the possible waveforms are sequentially selected until the correct one is presented to the user in response to the user repeating the touching that defines the touch area.