Touch-Aware Skin Grip Patterns for Occlusion-Free Interaction
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Solution Overview
Problem
Devices with small touchscreens face limitations in providing enhanced user interaction due to restricted gesture types and potential interference with content presentation, making traditional on-screen gestures insufficient in various contexts.
Innovation Solution
A computing device equipped with a touch-aware skin featuring skin sensors that detect interaction patterns, allowing for adaptive functionality based on how the device is held, enabling additional input methods and reducing interference with content displays.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If traditional on-screen gestures are used for user interaction, then user input functionality is provided, but the gestures may interfere with content presentation by occluding video or digital book content
Solution Approach 1:
The patent moves the interaction surface from the two-dimensional touchscreen display to the three-dimensional outer skin/surface of the device. By placing touch sensors on the device's exterior surfaces (back, sides, edges), users can perform gestures on areas that do not overlap with the display content, thereby eliminating occlusion while maintaining input functionality.
2Volume of moving object
If the device size is reduced to create a smaller footprint, then portability is improved, but the types and number of on-screen gestures that can be provided are limited
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extends the interaction area from the limited touchscreen surface to the entire outer skin of the device, including back and side surfaces. This dimensional expansion provides ample space for multiple gesture types even on compact devices, allowing users to perform various gestures without requiring a larger display.
Solution Approach 2:
The outer skin of the device serves multiple functions: it provides structural protection, aesthetic appearance, and now also serves as an input surface for gestures. By making the skin multi-functional, the patent enables diverse gesture capabilities on small devices without adding separate components.
3Adaptability or versatility
If more sensors are added to detect grip patterns, then user interaction enhancement is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The touch sensors integrated into the outer skin serve dual purposes: they detect grip patterns to enable adaptive functionality and also provide the basis for gesture recognition itself. This multi-functionality allows the system to enhance user interaction without requiring separate sensor systems for different functions.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent combines the grip detection function and gesture recognition function into a single sensor system embedded in the outer skin. By merging these functions, the patent reduces overall system complexity while maintaining enhanced interaction capabilities.
Data Source
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AI summary
Skinnable touch device grip pattern techniques are described herein. A touch-aware skin may be configured to substantially cover the outer surfaces of a computing device. The touch-aware skin may include a plurality of skin sensors configured to detect interaction with the skin at defined locations. The computing device may include one or more modules operable to obtain input from the plurality of skin sensors and decode the input to determine grips patterns that indicate how the computing device is being held by a user. Various functionality provided by the computing device may be selectively enabled and/or adapted based on a determined grip pattern such that the provided functionality may change to match the grip pattern.