Partial Radial Menu for Touchscreen Gesture Interaction
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Solution Overview
Problem
Implementing a user-friendly radial menu on touchscreen devices is challenging due to finger positioning issues, hand obstructions, and lack of support for different finger movements, making it difficult for users to access and interact with menu items effectively.
Innovation Solution
A partial circular radial menu is generated on a touchscreen based on a calculated radius between two finger points, allowing users to access menu items without extending their fingers, with optional sub-menus and automatic activation of selected options, enabling intuitive interaction and navigation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If a complete circular radial menu is implemented on touchscreen, then menu items are comprehensive, but finger positioning and hand obstructions make access difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the complete circular radial menu into multiple segments or zones. Instead of presenting all menu items in a full circle that obstructs the user's hand, the menu is segmented into accessible portions that can be reached without moving the finger excessively. This segmentation allows comprehensive menu options to be available while reducing the physical obstruction and positioning difficulty.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements a partial circular radial menu rather than a complete circle. By displaying only a portion of the full circular menu (e.g., a semi-circle or arc), the design provides sufficient menu options for typical use cases while avoiding the need for users to extend their fingers across the entire circular path, thus reducing access difficulty.
2Adaptability or versatility
If the radial menu supports multiple finger movements, then interaction flexibility increases, but the complexity of gesture recognition increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments different finger movements into distinct gesture types (e.g., radial movement for selection, tangential movement for navigation). Each gesture type is recognized and handled by separate processing logic, which simplifies the overall recognition system compared to attempting to recognize all possible finger movements as a single complex set of rules.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces an intermediary layer between raw touch input and menu activation. This intermediary layer processes and categorizes finger movements into standardized gesture types before triggering menu actions. This mediation simplifies the recognition complexity by providing a structured intermediate representation of user intentions.
3Stability of the object's composition
If the radial menu is positioned at the center of the screen, then navigation is symmetric, but finger positioning becomes more difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The patent positions the radial menu off-center or adapts its position based on the user's finger location rather than固定 it at the center of the screen. This asymmetric positioning allows the menu to be located in areas more accessible to the user's thumb or finger, improving ease of operation while maintaining functional symmetry in the menu's internal structure and navigation logic.
Data Source
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AI summary
The subject technology discloses configurations for providing a radial menu on one or more computing devices with a touch-sensitive screen. In one example, a user activates the radial menu after touching a first finger at a first or anchor point on a touchscreen that serves as a center of the radial menu. While the first finger is disposed, the user then touches a second finger at a second point some distance from the anchor point corresponding to the first finger on the touchscreen. The radial menu is generated based on a distance calculated between the anchor point and the second finger at the second point. The radial menu is not a complete circle and instead displayed as a partial circle, and the radial menu is generated so that the display area is bisected from the anchor point to the second point in some configurations.