Touch Screen Content Editing via Gesture and Contextual Command Area
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional user interfaces on multifunction devices with touch screen displays are complex and inflexible, making it difficult for users to efficiently edit content such as text and graphics, leading to a cognitive burden and increased power consumption in battery-operated devices.
Innovation Solution
A method involving a touch screen display that allows users to interact through finger gestures to expand content, move an insertion marker, and access editing commands, enabling intuitive editing functions like cutting, copying, and pasting by displaying content at different magnifications and providing a command display area for selecting actions.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If conventional user interfaces with physical pushbuttons are used, then users can access device functions, but the interface becomes complex and requires memorization of multiple key sequences and menu hierarchies
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces physical pushbuttons and mechanical keyboard interfaces with a touch-sensitive display that responds to finger gestures. This substitution eliminates the need for physical buttons while providing direct manipulation of content through natural touching, tapping, and dragging gestures, thereby simplifying the interface and reducing the cognitive burden of memorizing complex key sequences.
Solution Approach 2:
The touch-sensitive display allows users to directly interact with and manipulate content on the screen without requiring intermediate menu selections or button presses. Users can directly select, move, resize, and edit content elements through intuitive finger gestures, making the interface self-explanatory and eliminating the need to memorize complex command hierarchies.
2Productivity
If conventional editing methods are used on touch screen displays, then editing functions can be performed, but the process takes longer than necessary and increases power consumption
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements contextual menus and toolbars that automatically appear near selected content, providing immediate access to relevant editing commands. This preliminary preparation of editing options eliminates the need for users to navigate through multiple menu levels, thereby reducing editing time and the energy consumption associated with prolonged screen display and processing.
Solution Approach 2:
The interface is segmented into contextual regions with specialized editing tools that appear only when needed. By dividing the editing functionality into context-specific segments rather than presenting all options simultaneously, the system reduces overall processing requirements and power consumption while maintaining fast access to necessary editing functions.
3Volume of moving object
If the touch screen display size is reduced for portable devices, then device portability is improved, but the ability to efficiently edit text and graphics deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent utilizes the touch-sensitive display's spatial dimension by allowing users to directly touch and manipulate content at its displayed location. This direct spatial interaction eliminates the need for additional navigation dimensions (such as menu hierarchies or function keys), enabling efficient content editing on small portable devices through intuitive finger gestures that work naturally within the limited screen real estate.
Data Source
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AI summary
In some embodiments, a device displays content on a touch screen display and detects input by finger gestures. In response to the finger gestures, the device selects content, visually distinguishes the selected content, and/or updates the selected content based on detected input. In some embodiments, the device displays a command display area that includes one or more command icons; detects activation of a command icon in the command display area; and, in response to detecting activation of the command icon in the command display area, performs a corresponding action with respect to the selected content. Exemplary actions include cutting, copying, and pasting content.