Touch Display Indicator Position Maintenance

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing touch-sensitive displays on portable electronic devices face challenges in accurately simulating mouse hovering and converting touch inputs into indicator-based control events, leading to inaccuracies and undesired functions, especially when handling embedded applications designed for desktop or full-size computers.

Innovation Solution

A method and electronic device configuration that detects touches on a touch-sensitive display without displaying an indicator, reports an indicator position associated with the touch location as a roll-over or selection, and maintains this position upon touch end to continue performing roll-over functions, ensuring accurate input conversion and maintaining functionality.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Measurement precision

If an indicator is displayed on the touch-sensitive display to show touch location, then the user can see the cursor position, but the display area is reduced and the interface becomes more complex

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvecursor positioning accuracyVSAvoiddisplay area
Core Design Contradiction:
Measurement precisionVSArea of stationary object

Solution Approach 1:

The patent extracts the indicator display function from the touch-sensitive display itself, allowing the indicator to be shown on a separate overlay or virtual layer. This enables the cursor position to be visible without reducing the actual display area of the touch-sensitive display, resolving the contradiction between measurement precision and display area.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

2Productivity

If touch inputs are directly converted to indicator-based control events, then the response is immediate, but inaccuracies occur when handling embedded applications designed for desktop computers

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveinput response speedVSAvoidinput accuracy
Core Design Contradiction:
ProductivityVSMeasurement precision

Solution Approach 1:

The patent introduces an intermediary layer that translates touch inputs into simulated mouse events. This intermediary translation layer enables embedded applications designed for desktop computers to interpret touch inputs accurately, maintaining both fast response speed and high input accuracy by bridging the gap between touch input and application expectations.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

3Device complexity

If the indicator position is reset when touch ends, then the display is simplified, but the roll-over function is lost

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvecontrol mechanism complexityVSAvoidroll-over function capability
Core Design Contradiction:
Device complexityVSAdaptability or versatility

Solution Approach 1:

The patent maintains the indicator position in memory as a reported position even when the touch ends and the visual indicator is not displayed. This preliminary preservation of position data ensures that when the touch resumes or when roll-over events need to be detected, the system can continue functioning correctly without resetting the position, thus preserving the roll-over function while simplifying the display during non-touch periods.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #10Preliminary action

Data Source

PatentEP2508970B1Electronic device and method of controlling same
Publication Date: 2015.02.25 BLACKBERRY LTD
  • EP2508970B1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP2508970B1 patent drawingFigure 2
  • EP2508970B1 patent drawingFigure 3

AI summary

A method includes utilizing an application, displaying information on a touch-sensitive display, detecting on the touch-sensitive display, a touch at a touch location associated with multiple functions, reporting, to the application, an indicator position associated with the touch location, and maintaining the indicator position to perform one of the multiple functions based on the indicator position when the touch ends.