Touchscreen Drag-Operation Menu Access via Threshold Distance Detection
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Solution Overview
Problem
On touchscreen devices, the secondary button used to access menus is often reduced in size, making it difficult to actuate accurately due to the large contact area of a user's finger, and there is no mechanism to preview which button is selected before actuation, leading to clumsy and inaccurate selections.
Innovation Solution
Implementing a drag-operation technique to access menus by detecting a user-initiated input at a top-level control button, where a drag-operation is recognized by an uninterrupted movement beyond threshold distances, allowing for intuitive menu invocation without the need for precise tapping.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Area of stationary object
If the secondary button is reduced in size to decrease clutter on the GUI, then the visual clutter is reduced, but the button becomes difficult to actuate accurately on a touchscreen display
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the button interaction into two distinct phases: a large initial contact area for easy activation, and a smaller precise selection area for accurate menu selection. This is achieved by detecting the initial touch location and then tracking subsequent movement to determine final selection, allowing the button to serve both accessibility and precision functions.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent adds a temporal and movement dimension to the button interaction. Instead of relying solely on spatial precision of a small button, the system uses the trajectory and duration of the drag operation to determine selection. This transforms a 2D spatial problem into a 3D problem involving time and movement path.
2Area of stationary object
If the secondary button is reduced in size, then the GUI clutter is decreased, but there is no mechanism to preview which button is selected before actuation
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements continuous feedback during the drag operation by tracking the movement of the contact point relative to the button boundaries. The system provides real-time information about whether the drag has exited the button area, allowing the user to understand their selection status throughout the interaction rather than only at the moment of release.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent performs preliminary detection of the initial contact location and begins tracking the drag movement immediately upon contact. This preliminary action allows the system to prepare for the selection decision during the drag itself, rather than waiting until after the interaction is complete.
3Area of stationary object
If the secondary button is reduced in size, then the visual clutter is reduced, but the actuation becomes clumsy with wide variability in where the actuation occurs
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the actuation process into contact detection and selection determination phases. The initial contact can occur anywhere within a larger tolerance area, but the final selection is precisely determined by tracking the endpoint of the drag operation. This segmentation allows large contact area without sacrificing selection precision.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces drag movement trajectory as an intermediary mechanism between the user's finger and the final button selection. Instead of directly mapping finger contact to button selection, the system uses the path and endpoint of the drag as an intermediate step that reconciles the large contact area with precise selection requirements.
Data Source
AI summary
Computer-readable media, computerized methods, and computer systems for intuitively invoking a presentation action (e.g., rendering a menu) by applying a drag-operation at a top-level control button rendered at a touchscreen display are provided. Initially, aspects of a user-initiated input applied at the top-level control button are detected. These aspects may include an actuation location and a distance of a drag-movement therefrom. If a distance of the drag-movement at the touchscreen display is greater than a threshold distance in a particular radial direction from the actuation location, the user-initiated input is considered a drag-operation. Typically, a set of trigger boundaries are constructed based on system metrics to assist in disambiguating the drag-operation from a tap-type operation. If a drag-operation is identified, the presentation action is invoked; otherwise, a principle action associated with the top-level control button (e.g., manipulating content of an application) may be invoked.